2 Biggest Winners From the Bulls' First Preseason Game

When Dailyn Swain first checked into the game on Wednesday night, you could almost hear the slot machines and smell the casino smoke.

His initial stint – which lasted a little less than 4 minutes of action – felt a lot like Summer League. With Tre Jones sidelined shortly before the game due to a hip injury, Swain was thrust into the backup point guard spot. It was in this exact role that he started to overthink things in Las Vegas, leading to one of the more disappointing outings for a 2026 Top 15 pick.

The Bulls were -10 during Swain's first-quarter minutes, as the Suns' ball pressure immediately got to the rookie. Fans even saw him get called for a five-second violation after he struggled to move the ball past half court.

Tiago Splitter eventually called him back to the bench, where he and Swain's teammates gave him a boost of confidence. The head coach told the rookie that if the defense was pressing, he had the green light to go.

"They were physical, they were picking up full court. You just have to embrace that physicality and be aggressive," Splitter said after the game. "That's part of Dailyn's development. A day like this, I think it was great for him ... He just has to be aggressive and drive the ball. He can do it. We have seen it in practice.”

As the game progressed, so did Swain. He looked increasingly comfortable with the Suns' attack, doing a much better job of getting off the ball fast and setting up the offense. Being decisive often leads to good things, and Swain learned that on Night 1.

"I just had to stop playing with the ball in the backcourt and just make my move and go," Swain said. "I didn't want to break off the play at first, but if I had the advantage, I just have to take it. People came back and helped me with the ball, set screens in the backcourt, so it freed up things for me."

Swain would go on to finish with 10 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals. He was a perfect 3-3 from the field and 4-4 from the charity stripe. To be sure, his buckets weren't getting too many fans out of their seats. But that's not what the Bulls are asking of him right now. They need to see him get more comfortable on the court and be opportunistic offensively. Swain did that by hustling in transition and not hesitating when the pressure arrived.

It's all about taking gradual steps in the right direction. Considering where he was a few months back, Swain took a bigger step than anyone else in preseason Game 1.

"It shows it's not about how you start but how you finish," Swain said. "I feel like I finished on a different note than I started, obviously. But it's a credit to my teammates keeping my head up, coach keeping my head up, not allowing to beat myself up and also piling on. Just trying to encourage me. They did a great job with that."

Tobe Awaka

It may be preseason, but it's hard to imagine Tobe Awaka expected to play 21+ minutes in his debut. Injuries to both Zach Collins and Nic Claxton left the team short-handed in the frontcourt. With Jalen Smith starting, head coach Tiago Splitter was either going small off the bench or calling upon his rookie.

Even then, Awaka isn't some kind of traditionally imposing center. The former Arizona standout stands only six-foot-eight. There are several forwards on the team taller than him. Whether there is anyone stronger, however, is up for debate. Awaka has a monster build and used that to become a prolific rebounder at the college level. He's now trying to see if it can translate to the NBA stage.

The immediate results were promising. Awaka finished the Bulls' 124-117 win over the Suns with a double-double, scoring 14 points with 11 rebounds. He may have been facing off against a true seven-footer in Khaman Maluach, but it didn't stop him from crashing the boards.

"He is like that every single day. He is a warrior," Dailyn Swain said about his Year 1 teammate after the game. "That's his thing. I think now everyone is starting to figure that out. I knew about Tobe in college. Everybody talked about him when he was at Tennessee, he was at Arizona. He changes teams."

Awaka's night was far from perfect, to be clear. He finished with six fouls and was far from the kind of rim protector this Bulls team clearly needed. At the same time, he created multiple second-chance opportunities (6 OREBs) and went 6-8 from the field. When it came to how Tiago Splitter wanted to play, there was something about Awaka's fight that simply fit in.

“It’s a combination of strength and willpower," Splitter said of Awaka after the game. "That guy is going for every rebound. We’ve seen that the whole summer, it’s not a secret for us. And tonight was another demonstration of that.”

So, why is Awaka so good at cleaning the glass? It's something he has worked on since High School, only to see the fruits of that labor pay off even more at the college level. Every team needs rebounders, and Awaka knew that was an area where he could stand out.

"I think it's just intent," Awaka said following Thursday's practice. "People can kind of break it down into a science, but I think overall it's just going every single time and just knowing the more chances you give yourself to crash, we'll all end up getting a few. And then obviously, you play with guys that you know where their shots are going to come from and how guys miss."

Awaka said he watches tons of film to get a better feel for where to be on the floor. This mostly includes studying his own teammates to see what shots they prefer and how their misses typically bounce off the rim.

Awaka still has a significant uphill battle in front of him for playing time. The Bulls' center rotation – assuming full health – is suddenly pretty deep. But a strong preseason is all it takes to get your head coach thinking. If Awaka can continue to assert himself in the rebounding department and force extra possessions, that may be enough to earn him more playing time than expected in Year 1.

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