CHICAGO -- The Bulls are the lone undefeated team remaining in the Eastern Conference, improving to 5-0 for the first time since the 1996-97 season with a 135-125 victory over the New York Knicks on Friday night.
It's only the third time in franchise history the Bulls have started a season this fast, but not since the days of Michael Jordan has Chicago found itself undefeated at this point of a season. And although the Bulls were riding high after Friday's victory, they also had a conversation in the locker room after the game that it was still early.
"We feel good as a group of where we're at right now, but there's a long way to go," Bulls guard Josh Giddey said. "Every night there's different guys making plays and stepping up. We've got a bunch of guys -- six, seven guys averaging double figures. That kind of speaks volumes to how deep we are as a team and the impact we're getting across the board."
Giddey led the way with a career-high 32 points with 10 rebounds and nine assists in what was his best scoring game since joining the Bulls last season. He scored 21 points in the first half as the Bulls opened a 72-53 advantage and Giddey knocked down four 3-pointers, which matched his career best for any half.
Through the five games, Giddey is averaging 22 points, 8 assists and 8.8 rebounds on 48% shooting (45% from 3-point range).
"It's a place where I'm wanted," Giddey said. "I love having confidence from my teammates and the coaches to trust me to go out there and make plays. That's kind of what we need as a player. When you have the belief from everybody around you, it propels you in the right direction. So, I'm feeling good, we're feeling good as a team."
In addition to Giddey, the Bulls had six players finish in double figures. Their offense has thrived on playing fast and moving the ball, and Friday they collected 31 assists on 45 field goals.
"We all love each other, we all love playing with each other," Giddey said. "And when you enjoy the people you get to go to work with every day, it makes it a lot more fun and enjoyable."
Four of Chicago's wins this season have come against projected playoff teams in the East, including New York, Orlando, Atlanta and Detroit. And the Bulls schedule will continue to test them: Their next game Sunday is also against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden before they return home Tuesday night to face the Sixers, who lost for the first time this season Friday.
"The mentality that they believe, which I think is very, very powerful, I think when there's belief it's really, really powerful," said Bulls coach Billy Donovan, who earned his 200th victory Friday as the team's coach. "There's good connection. They've got good relationships. They all can talk to each other. I think there's a lot of positive things that they have that really go into winning.
"Listen, it's very early. It's five games and I'm happy with the start that we've got, just like, yeah, it's five games. We get a lot more ways to go and we can't lose sight."