Is Tiago Splitter Worried About the Bulls' League-Worst 3-Point Shooting?

With Halloween right around the corner, Chicago just opened a new terrifying haunted house: The United Center

While it may sound a bit unassuming, I challenge anyone to sit through a Bulls game and not cover their eyes at the sight of this team's grotesque three-point shooting. No team in the NBA has been worse in that department over the first week of the season. The Bulls have failed to shoot better than 27.3 percent in each of their first three games. This included going 4-36 from downtown in their season-opening performance against the Toronto Raptors.

*shivers*

Bulls Off to Scary Start From Downtown

The Chicago Bulls are now 28-124 from behind the arc, giving them a 22.6 percent success rate that comfortably sits dead last in the league. And despite the lack of results, Chicago has yet to take their foot off the gas. Their 41.3 attempts per game mark the fourth-most to begin the year.

The good news is that we're talking about an incredibly small sample size. These numbers are bound to improve as the offense develops and players become more comfortable with one another. However, whether that improvement is significant remains a very fair question. Anyone who follows the Bulls closely knew that three-point shooting was a concern coming into 2026-27. It's why they went out of their way to grab Norman Powell in free agency and trade for Buddy Hield near the end of the offseason.

Nevertheless, having only a couple of proven shooters in the rotation is rarely going to mask a roster-wide weakness -- just as the head coach!

“We all knew coming into the season it’s going to be one of the things we’ve got to get better at and develop," Splitter said after the Bulls shot 12-43 against the Wizards.

Buzelis and Wilson, in particular, have failed to find much of a rhythm from deep. Buzelis shot just 2-7 in his outing against the Wizards, while Caleb Wilson was an even worse 1-9. Considering how good both are at attacking the paint and getting to the free throw line, it's hard not to wonder if their shot diet should change.

Well, Splitter doesn't think so.

“Yes, I want them to shoot the ball. They can shoot," Splitter said confidently. "It’s part of their development. You’re open, you got to shoot it. You practice every day, and you have to do it in the game.”

Splitter also commented that the Bulls' shot selection will depend on what the opposing team is giving up. If they are leaving a good cushion at the three-point line, he's comfortable with his team taking that shot. Now, one could argue there is a clear reason why opposing defenses are giving that cushion, as they prefer the Bulls to take that shot. But there is only one way to earn a team's respect from deep, and that's to prove you can hit the shot.

The Bulls have failed to do that thus far, but Splitter is clearly motivated to change that. And, hey, it's hard to blame him in a season like this. The Bulls are focused primarily on development in 2026-27, and they want their two talented young wings to be as versatile as possible. To become a viable three-point threat, you have to get in the reps and build confidence behind the arc.

“I feel like it’s a three-point shooting league, and they will fall," Wilson said of his early-season woes. "Even today, I couldn’t believe myself. I couldn’t throw a three in the basket and at the end of the game I hit a three. It’ll come. We’re playing off a back-to-back, and that’s no excuse, but I feel like could have been a reason we didn’t hit our shots like we should have. At the end the game, we hit them when they mattered, so maybe it’s just a focus thing.”

Maybe the discussion changes around Thanksgiving if the Chicago Bulls fail to show meaningful growth. You can only force the issue for so long. For now, however, it's hard to disagree with Splitter's mentality.

Even if it may not make for the most aesthetically pleasing basketball game, that's not what it's about for the Bulls right now. They want to motivate their young talent to progress in every department, especially the ones where they tend to struggle most.

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