The Chicago Bulls welcomed back a two-way guard, and DePaul coach Chris Holtmann gave the Blue Demons something good to talk about in this week’s Chicago basketball report.
Every Tuesday, Tribune writers will provide an update on what happened — and what’s ahead — for the Bulls, Sky and local college basketball teams. Want more? Sign up for our Tribune sports newsletter.
Yuki Kawamura returns to the court
After three months away from the game, two-way guard Kawamura returned to the Windy City Bulls on Thursday in a dominant 131-104 G League win over the San Diego Clippers.
Kawamura was waived by the Bulls earlier this season while recovering from a blood clot but remained in Chicago for his treatment and earned another two-way contract upon receiving medical clearance to play. He came off the bench for Windy City in Thursday’s game, racking up seven assists.
The Bulls have worked through the majority of their guard deficiency after suffering a series of injuries at the position earlier this season. Starting point guard Josh Giddey practiced Sunday with Windy City and could return to practice with the Bulls later this week if he continues to experience limited discomfort after missing three weeks with a hamstring strain.
That means Kawamura likely won’t see minutes with the Bulls on his two-way contract; however, coach Billy Donovan has not ruled out the possibility if the team suffers backcourt injuries again in the future.
Chris Holtmann’s promise
Holtmann and the DePaul men’s basketball team gave the Blue Demons some good PR in the same week news broke of a game-fixing scandal involving a former DePaul team.
In an indictment that became public Thursday, four former DePaul players were alleged to have taken thousands of dollars in bribes to purposely underperform in the first halves of three Big East games during the 2023-24 season.
The game-fixing scandal, part of a scheme allegedly involving 39 players on 17 NCAA Division I teams, happened before DePaul hired Holtmann in March 2024.
Holtmann is trying to help turn around the program that lost 39 straight regular-season Big East games until last January — including some that were alleged to have been fixed.
On Friday, one day after news of the indictment broke, DePaul beat Marquette 80-75, its first win in the series since March 2022. That stretched the Blue Demons’ home winning streak at Wintrust Arena to three games, all in the Big East.
It’s a small number but significant given that the Blue Demons were 4-16 in conference play last season, Holtmann’s first. They are now 11-7 overall and 3-4 in the Big East, with two of the conference losses to No. 2 Connecticut.
After the game, Holtmann posted on social media: “Highest student attendance in the history of Wintrust and one of the largest crowds!!! Thank you!!! First round on me at Kelly’s Pub near campus. See you in 35 min!”
He kept his word. At 12:52 a.m., DePaul posted a video on social media of Holtmann sitting on a bar, announcing he would buy the first round for students and then passing around a bucket of beer bottles.
On Monday, senior guard CJ Gunn was named Big East player of the week after he scored a career-high 31 points, including seven 3-pointers, against Marquette. Gunn is averaging 14.5 points on 45.3% shooting.
Number of the week: 14.6
The Bulls rank second-to-last in the NBA in deflections with 14.6 per game through Monday. They outpace only the Charlotte Hornets (14.5) and have sat near the bottom of the league in this statistic throughout the season.
Hustle statistics don’t tell the entire story for a team’s defense — in fact, the Bulls rank high in many key hustle statistics, including shot contests (45.1 per game, second in the league) and charges drawn (0.6 per game, third). But the lack of deflections reflects their inability to disrupt opposing offenses before they take a shot, which could be one explanation for why teams shoot so well against the Bulls.
Week ahead: Bulls
- Tuesday: vs. Clippers, 7 p.m., CHSN
- Thursday: at Timberwolves, 7 p.m., CHSN
- Saturday: vs. Celtics, 7 p.m., CHSN
- Monday: vs. Lakers, 7 p.m., CHSN
The Bulls will retire the No. 1 jersey of former MVP and hometown hero Derrick Rose after Saturday’s game against the Boston Celtics. The ceremony will include speeches from Rose and former teammates. The game also will feature giveaways and a special exhibit in the United Center atrium.
Week ahead: Best college games
- Wednesday: Maryland men at No. 11 Illinois, 6 p.m., BTN
- Wednesday: Northwestern men at USC, 10 p.m., BTN
- Saturday: Illinois women at No. 24 Nebraska, 1 p.m., BTN
- Saturday: No. 11 Illinois men at No. 4 Purdue, 2 p.m., Fox-32
- Saturday: Seton Hall men at DePaul, 4 p.m., TruTV
- Saturday: Northwestern men at UCLA, 5 p.m., FS1
- Sunday: Clemson women at Notre Dame, 2 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Northwestern goes hunting for its first Big Ten win on a West Coast trip to USC and UCLA. The UCLA game is part of a packed Saturday slate for local teams, including big road games for the Illinois men and women. The Illini men’s game at No. 4 Purdue is the start of a seriously difficult stretch of road tests. After the Boilermakers, the Illini’s next two away games are at No. 7 Nebraska and No. 10 Michigan State.
What we’re reading
- Column: Bulls are trapped in a ‘Groundhog Day’ time loop of mediocrity. Is there any escape?
- Chicago prepares for WNBA All-Star Weekend with a pitch to local investors and businesses: ‘Do a little more’
- Zvonimir Ivišić and Keaton Wagler fuel No. 13 Illinois to 77-67 win over Minnesota for 7th straight victory
- Northwestern no match for No. 8 Nebraska, which improves to 18-0 with 77-58 victory
- 3 takeaways as Bulls beat the Nets — but the biggest cheers weren’t for the basketball
- Former DePaul players alleged to have fixed 3 Big East games in 20-person basketball gambling indictment
- Column: Matas Buzelis was benched again. Are the Bulls placing enough priority on his development?
- Berry Wallace scores a career-high 29 points as No. 25 Illinois beats Northwestern 74-71
- Ayo Dosunmu has been a stabilizing force for the Bulls. Is he also one of their best trade assets?
Quote of the week
“It speaks to the unselfishness, the maturity of this team. It’s an old group, and they’ve really bought into the whole team concept on both ends of the floor. It makes our job as coaches a lot easier when you can hold them accountable. They don’t take it personal. There’s never been one time when they talked back or hung their heads, and we’re going to have to continue with that.” — Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg after a 77-58 win Saturday at Northwestern to improve to 18-0. He was referring to his players’ ability to get the ball to leading scorers Pryce Sandfort and Braden Frager, who combined for 42 points against the Wildcats.
