Trail Blazers Vs Bulls — trail blazers vs bulls: Bulls pick good night to lose and the right team to lose to in Portland
The Trail Blazers beat the Bulls 121-112 on Feb. 26, 2026, a result summed up by the phrase trail blazers vs bulls in a night that completed the worst month in Bulls franchise history: an 0-11 February. The loss leaves the Bulls mired in a streak that has become the third-longest losing run in franchise history.
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Front office versus coach
Coach and front office can’t always be philosophically aligned. In the green corner were executive vice president Arturas Karnisovas and sidekick/general manager Marc Eversley, who know that Trail Blazers success means Bulls success. The Bulls hold Portland’s lottery-protected first-round pick, but only if the Blazers make the playoffs; otherwise, it carries over for another year through 2028.
In the red corner was the coach from Rockville Centre, New York, Billy Donovan, who continues spending long nights in the office trying to figure out how he can will this mishmash of a roster to a victory. Billy Donovan doesn’t know any other way.
Donovan on lineup and draft
Donovan said the conversations he had when the trade deadline was finalized made his assignment clear: “Nothing has changed, try and get these guys to play to the best of their ability; we know it’s going to be somewhat challenging with seven new players, ” he said. He added that in talks with ownership the message has been, “Hey, go out there and do your very best. ” Donovan said there has been no indication from ownership or the front office of, “‘Hey, listen, if we finish here, here or here’ or ‘Listen, don’t worry about playing these guys; just play these guys. ’ There’s been none of that at all. ”
He acknowledged the draft dynamics, saying, “Philosophically, I get the dynamics once June, whatever date that draft date is, I get how that impacts all of that. It’s not like I’m sitting over there saying, ‘Well, it’s a close game right now, let’s sit Josh [Giddey] and Tre [Jones] and Jalen [Smith]. ’ There has not been that. And I think if I did do that, they would say, ‘Listen, you need to put the best guys out there. ’ ”
Game breakdown and turnovers
For the 11th consecutive time, it was Donovan and the roster he has been given. As a result of another high-turnover game — 20 in this one — the Bulls (24-36) stumbled to the worst month in franchise history with an 0-11 February, losing 121-112. The Bulls got 20 points from Matas Buzelis, but even he wasn’t great on a 6-for-16 shooting night.
Play-in implications and roster moves
Karnisovas & Co. likely viewed the result differently: Portland’s win kept the Blazers in the No. 9 spot for the play-in, still trying to close in on the No. 8 Warriors. Donovan said he wasn’t looking to offer a helping hand in that chase, but he was not oblivious to the prospect of adding a second first-round pick in what the piece calls a loaded class. The story notes the front office has been under pressure and that it made sure of its position by trading some of the team’s better guys.
Closing minutes and reactions
If Donovan needed a reminder about where the team stands, it came in the last minutes after a dunk by Leonard Miller cut the deficit to three with 3: 37 left. Rather than build off that and continue the rally, the Bulls’ defense fell apart; Donovan’s squad was outscored 13-7 to close the game out. The stretch contributes to what is now the third-longest losing streak in franchise history.
“We’re not making excuses; we don’t think we’re 11-game-losing-streak bad, ” forward Isaac Okoro said. “At this point, we just have to come to the game focused and do the little things right. Block” — unclear in the provided context.
Trail Blazers 121-112 Bulls (Feb 26, 2026) Game Recap captures the score and the date that marked the conclusion of that difficult month, and the narrative emphasizes both the immediate game result and the wider roster and draft implications tied to Portland’s standing.
Closing: The Bulls make history going a full month without winning a single game, and the loss in Portland crystallized tensions between front office strategy and coaching urgency while preserving the Blazers’ play-in position and the conditional status of their lottery-protected pick through 2028.
