Last night, the Chicago Bulls were down to just a 3.7% chance to win with over five minutes remaining in their second meeting this week with the Atlanta Hawks. On Sunday, the Bulls survived the offensive onslaught and prevailed 152-150 after a missed buzzer-beating floater by Trae Young. Last night, things got chippy several times, including Jalen Johnson getting in the face of Matas Buzelis, and shortly after, Young getting testy with Ayo Dosunmu. After a brief scuffle, the Bulls would go on to outscore Atlanta by 16 in the fourth quarter, knock down a few late free throws, and come away with two crucial victories against the club directly ahead of them in the Eastern Conference standings. After a third consecutive loss to Chicago in the rivalry, Atlanta's star guard is starting to let his emotions boil over.
Ayo Continues To Dominate Trae Young
Young is one of the best playmaking and three-point shooting guards in the NBA. With four All-Star nominations, one All-NBA nod, one Eastern Conference Finals appearance, and claiming the leaguewide assists crown last year, he's a double-double threat nightly and poses a challenge for the opposition. Ever since entering the league in 2021, Dosunmu must have missed the memo. He's controlled nearly every matchup with the All-Star guard, and his disruptive defense has produced some of the ugliest and least efficient games of Young's illustrious career.
Trae Young averages 24.4 pts, 12.2 ast, 38.4 FG%, 31.8 3P%, and 4.2 tov in the 13 games against Ayo Dosunmu per @statmuse
— Bulls On Tap (@BullsOnTap) December 24, 2025
Dosunmu averages 14.1 pts, 2.4 reb, 3.5 ast, 62.2 FG%, 55.3 3P%, and one game winner.
pic.twitter.com/5eLejUAV10
The latest notable lackluster outing was the 2024 NBA Play-In Tournament performance against Dosunmu, where he posted 22 points and ten dimes. Doesn't sound bad, right? Well, it was accompanied by a 4-for-12 shooting performance, and six turnovers, while netting a team-low -27 plus/minus rating while on the floor.
Trae Young Finally Had Enough
Last night's scuffle between the two was a perfect storm for the Hawks guard. He was again struggling from the floor, just 1-of-7 from three-point land, and was witnessing Chicago climb back into the game. To his relief, Dosunmu was called to the bench immediately after Young re-entered. Here's what Dosunmu had to say about the interaction.
Don’t slap Ayo on the ass … ever never. Bulls guard explains the dust-up with Trae Young. pic.twitter.com/KF7AlDpR99
— Joe Cowley (@JCowleyHoops) December 24, 2025
The frustration from the 27-year-old is entirely understandable, seeing how badly he's being bullied in this specific matchup. In any case, Chicago comes out on top once again, and Dosunmu continues to nestle a rent-free home in Young's head.
