Cavaliers Pull Away From Bulls Down the Stretch in 100-91 Summer League Win

Cleveland used a decisive second-half push to hold off Chicago 100-91 in NBA Summer League action. The 9-point margin reflected a Cavaliers team that controlled the game's key stretches while the Bulls battled short-handed.

The decisive moment

Cleveland's separation came in the middle stretch of the game, when a sustained run put Chicago in catch-up mode for good. The Bulls never found the answer to close the gap, and the Cavaliers controlled the final margin from there.

By the numbers

Final score: Cleveland 100, Chicago 91
Margin of victory: 9 points
Bulls playing without Zach Collins (toe), Jalen Smith (calf) and Josh Giddey (ankle), all day-to-day
Cavaliers without Tristan Enaruna (illness), also day-to-day

The absences on both sides shaped rotations, with Chicago particularly thin after losing three contributors to day-to-day issues.

What it means

For Cleveland, the win is a solid showing in NBA Summer League play as the roster continues to take shape ahead of the 2026-27 NBA Regular Season. For Chicago, the loss came against a shorthanded lineup missing three regulars, making it hard to draw firm conclusions about the group's ceiling this summer.

Summer League results carry limited weight for the regular season, but performances like this still offer both front offices useful evaluation data on younger and fringe roster pieces.

What to watch next

Both clubs continue their Summer League slates with an eye toward finalizing training camp rosters. Health updates on the day-to-day players for Chicago will be worth monitoring as the schedule progresses.