The Oklahoma City Thunder improved to 2-0 on the season with a 114-95 victory over the Chicago Bulls.

The Thunder forced 24 Bulls turnovers while committing just 10, giving them valuable extra possessions on a night where they shot 8 of 39 (20.5%) from downtown.

Chicago shot just 32 of 92 (34.8%) from the field and 15 of 53 (28.3%) from triples on the night after losing 133 points to Milwaukee, a testament to the Thunder’s potent perimeter defense.

Jalen Williams had a game-high 24 points, nine rebounds and eight assists after a slow start.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 points in three quarters, making nine of his 21 field goal attempts and two of his nine triples. He added eight rebounds, four steals and two assists.

Chet Holmgren recorded his second straight double-double, scoring 21 points on 8-of-18 shooting and grabbing 16 rebounds. He missed all five 3-point attempts after an identical 0-of-5 performance in the season opener.

The packed United Center crowd applauded a video tribute to Alex Caruso during the game’s first timeout, as he made his first appearance for Chicago. Caruso played three seasons in a Bulls uniform, highlighted by back-to-back All-Defensive teams from 2022-2024.

“I gave everything I had to try to win games and to make the city proud, the organization proud,” Caruso said during a pregame press briefing. “I was grateful for my time (in Chicago). I think it helped me grow as a player, and the relationships that I built, you know, are very meaningful and impactful. … Being back here in other colors still seems a bit strange to me.

Caruso scored his first points for the Thunder on a 3-pointer from the left wing four minutes into the second quarter. He had three points on 1-of-5 shooting, two rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks.

The Thunder started mainstays Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Luguentz Dort, with Cason Wallace replacing Isaiah Joe from the season opener.

Oklahoma City forced five Bulls turnovers in the first five minutes. After Gilgeous-Alexander’s second early steal, Wallace threw down a transition dunk from the left over Zach LaVine to give the Thunder an 11-7 lead.

The two teams had combined for 10-of-41 shooting from the field when Gilgeous-Alexander made his first basket, an and-one layup over Coby White to put Oklahoma City up 19-14.

Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams shot 3 of 12 and missed all four 3-point attempts in the first quarter. The Thunder defense held Chicago to six field goals in the first quarter for 21 points, two days after allowing just 36 points in the second half against the Nuggets.

Midway through the second quarter, Holmgren went down holding his left thigh following a foul by Bulls center Nikola Vucevic, although he made both resulting free throws and remained in the game. Holmgren made a contested layup on the next possession to bring his total to nine points and five rebounds.

The Thunder went on a 15-2 run after Vucevic drained his second triple of the evening. Gilgeous-Alexander made a left-handed layup and a high-end 3-pointer, and Aaron Wiggins executed a spin move and a smooth transition layup.

A dunk by Holmgren and a pull-up jumper by Williams with 0.9 seconds left gave Oklahoma City a comfortable 59-39 halftime lead. Gilgeous-Alexander made all four field goal attempts in the second quarter, pushing him to 17 points in the first half with a game-high +20 plus-minus.

Holmgren had a coast-to-coast dunk to start the second half, although the Thunder’s shooting struggles remained. They missed their first six 3-point attempts after halftime until Williams made a triple from the right wing with 3:41 left in the third quarter.

Ousmane Dieng returned a layup attempt from Jalen Smith to close the period, triggering another transition layup from Wiggins. Dieng began the season as the Thunder’s backup center to Holmgren, providing the team with quality defense in the absence of Isaiah Hartenstein. Oklahoma City led 88-65 after three quarters.

Dieng scored a layup over Smith and received a dime from Ajay Mitchell for a breakaway dunk, his first four points of the game. The Thunder maintained their advantage thanks to Holmgren and Williams, as they each crossed 20 points without Gilgeous-Alexander coming back.

The Thunder will play their home opener tomorrow night against the Atlanta Hawks at 6 p.m. CST.

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