Chicago Bulls (1-2) at Boston Celtics (1-1)
Monday, October 26, 2026
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #3, Home Game #2
TV: NBCSB, CHSN, NBA-LP
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 104.3 The Score, Sirius XM
TD Garden
The Celtics play their second straight home game as they host the Chicago Bulls. This is the first of 4 games between these two teams this season. They will play again at Boston on October 30 and will play at Chicago on December 30 and March 9. The Celtics were 2-1 last season against the Bulls, winning
both in Boston and losing 1 in Chicago.
This is the first of 16 back to back sets for the Celtics this season. They will host the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday to complete the back to back set. The Celtics were good in back to back games last season and hopefully, with their depth, it will carry through to this season. The Celtics are 139-111 overall, all time against the Bulls and they are 80-40 in games played at home.
The Bulls have had a lot of change since last season. They replaced Billy Donovan with Tiago Splitter at head coach. They traded for Nic Claxton and Buddy Hield. They signed free agent Norman Powell and 2-way players Tobe Awaka and Jaylin Sellers. They signed Caleb Wilson (4th pick) and Dailyn Swain (15th pick). They lost Anfernee Simons, Collin Sexton, Nick Richards, Yuki Kawamura, MacMcClung, Guerschon Yabusele and Rob Dillingham.
The Celtics went 4-0 in the preseason, winning with both starters in 2 games and reserves and Exhibit 10 players in 2 others. They beat Cleveland, Charlotte and Philadelphia twice. The Bulls went 3-2 in the preseason, beating Minnesota and Milwaukee and Phoenix and losing to Denver and Memphis.
After this game, the Celtics will play home against Brooklyn and Chicago again. They will then play at Orlando and Houston and then home against Milwaukee before a road tripp takes them through Charlotte, Milwaukee, Philadelphia and Toronto. They play Dallas and Orlando at home before a West coast trip that takes them through Denver, Sacramento, Golden State, and Washington.
Next for the Bulls, they will host New York before a 3 game road trip through Boston, Philadelphia and New York. They then host Philadelphia, San Antonio and Atlanta before playing at Minnesota, Cleveland, and Brooklyn. They then host Washington, Denver and Cleveland before one road game at Charlotte and a 6 game home stand hosting Indiana, New York, Cleveland, Houston, Miami and Utah.
The Celtics started Derrick White, Jordan Walsh, Paul George, Jayson Tatum and Mitchell Robinson in the first 2 games and I have once again listed the same starters for this game. It’s also possible that Joe may change this up for this game. I’ve listed the Bulls starters from their last game, which are Josh Giddey, Norman Powell, Matas Buzelis, Caleb Wilson, and Jalen Smith.
The Celtics still have just Devin Carter on the injury report due to illness. After missing the final 3 games of the preseason, Carter was diagnosed with mononucleosis and is without a timetable for a return. The Bulls list starting center Nic Claxton out due to a hamstring injury. Patrick Williams (groin) and Noa Essengue (head) both missed Saturday’s game and are questionable for this game.
Probable Starting Matchups
PG: Derrick White vs Josh Giddey
SG: Jordan Walsh vs Norman Powell
SF: Paul George vs Matas Buzelis
PF: Jayson Tatum vs Caleb Wilson
C: Mitchell Robinson vs Jalen Smith
Celtics Reserves
Chris Cenac, Jr
Mike Conley, Jr
Luka Garza
Hugo Gonzalez
Ron Harper, Jr
Sam Hauser
Payton Pritchard
Neemias Queta
Baylor Scheierman
Two Way Players
Devin Carter
Dillon Mitchell
Amari Williams
Injuries/Out
Devin Carter (illness) out
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Bulls Reserves
Zach Collins
Buddy Hield
Tre Jones
Leonard Miller
Isaac Okoro
Dailyn Swain
Two-Way Players
Tobe Awaka
Jordan Hawkins
Jaylin Sellers
Injuries/Out
Nic Claxton (hamstring) out
Noa Essengue (head) questionable
Patrick Williams (groin) questionable
Head Coach
Tiago Splitter
Key Matchups
Jayson Tatum vs Caleb Wilson
Wilson was the 4th pick in the draft for the Bulls and is playing very well so far. He is averaging 22.3 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.3 blocks per game while shooting 40.7% from the field and 17.4% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need another big game from Jayson Tatum on both ends of the court.
Jordan Walsh vs Norman Powell
Powell is averaging 19.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 2.0 steals. He is shooting 34.1% from the field and 28% from beyond the arc. Over his career against the Celtics, he averaged 10.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists. Walsh’s defense made a difference against the Knicks and he will need to continue to make a difference on that end of the court in this game.
Honorable Mention
Paul George vs Matas Buzelis
Buzelis is the only player left from the Bulls starters in their last game against the Celtics. He is averaging 15.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.0 blocks per game while shooting 36.7% from the field and 13.3% from beyond the arc. Over his career against the Celtics, he averaged 11.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. We will see how many minutes PG will play in back to back games.
Keys to the Game
Defense – As always, defense is the key to winning this, and every, game. In the preseason, the Celtics were tops in the league with a defensive rating of 98.6. In the second half of their first game, the Celtics allowed the Pistons to score 78 points. The biggest problem in the Celtics collapse against the Pistons was their failure on the defensive end. Likewise, one of the biggest factors in their win over the Knicks was their They held New York to just 103 points and also forced 18 turnovers, leading to 19 points off turnovers. The Celtics need to continue to make defense their priority.
Rebound – As with defense, rebounding will always be a key to winning. The Celtics have to crash the boards as a team and go after every rebound. In the preseason, the Celtics were 1st with 55 rebounds per game and 3rd with 16.8 offensive rebounds per game. So far in the regular season, they are last in rebounding with just 38 rebounds per game. The Bulls are 9th with 48.3 rebounds per game. Robinson and Queta are 2 of the best rebounders in the league and they need to be aggressive on the boards. The Celtics need to get back to what they do best and win the rebounding battle against the Bulls.
Move the Ball Carefully – The Celtics need to move the ball to get the best shots. The Celtics are much better when they move the ball and don’t lapse into iso ball. Hopefully this season we will see much less iso ball than in the past. But, they have to be careful with the ball and avoid turnovers. They need to make the extra pass to find the best shot but they also need to stay focused and make careful passes. The Bulls are averaging 17.3 points off turnovers per game.
3 Point Shooting – If the Bulls have one weakness, it is their 3 point shooting. As a team, they are shooting 41.3 threes per game to 40.5 threes per game for the Celtics. However, the Celtics are shooting 39.5% from beyond the arc (7th) while the Bulls are shooting just 22.6% from beyond the arc (30th). The Celtics need to defend the perimeter and not allow them to get hot shooting the 3.
X-Factors
Home Game – The Celtics need to take advantage of home court and the boost their fans can give them. The Bulls will face a hostile crowd and an unfamiliar arena along with travel which will hopefully give the Celtics the edge. The Celtics need to play hard and protect home court and use the advantages it gives to get a win.
Officiating – Officiating is always an x-factor in every game. Every crew officiates differently. Some call it tight, others let them play. The Celtics need to adjust to how the refs are calling the game and not allow bad calls or no calls to take away their focus from playing the game. The Celtics also have to be aware of the new points of emphasis for this season and try to avoid flopping, off‑arm push‑offs, reckless closeouts, delays before free throws, and illegal screens. Paul George was already fined for a flop in the first game.
