![\"Matas](\"https:\/\/cst.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/3bb2e0d\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/7057x4705+0+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F20%2F9d%2F01b34c104ba2b7c727e67a655471%2Fwizards-bulls-basketball.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
He has moonlighted as a special correspondent for the NBA during the Finals, he was the Bulls\u2019 good-luck charm at the draft lottery and this past week he played fashion model, showing off the Michael Jordan-era pinstripes that the team will wear this upcoming season.<\/p>\n
Matas Buzelis is everywhere, and it\u2019s becoming more and more obvious that the franchise needs him to become everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has so much skill in his bag,\u201d executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said at the end of Buzelis\u2019 rookie season. \u201cShooting threes, blocking shots, running the break, dunking the ball, he\u2019s athletic, he can put it on the floor, create for others, so we\u2019ve seen a lot of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Karnisovas knows that if his second rebuild is going to have any real legs, the Bulls need to belong to his athletic 20-year-old forward. So far, so good this offseason.<\/p>\n
Buzelis got in the weight room right away in the spring, was a force when the team had voluntary workouts in Los Angeles in May, then took to being a secondary ballhandler in Las Vegas, playing in two Summer League games and averaging 22.5 points and five rebounds.<\/p>\n
Since Vegas, it has been more weight room and back in the lab to continue developing his game. By all accounts, Buzelis wants to be a special player and is doing what it takes to stay on that track.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wants to be coached, he wants to be coached hard and he wants to be accountable,\u201d Karnisovas said.<\/p>\n
That was on display throughout 2024-25.<\/p>\n
Buzelis began the season fighting for minutes off the bench like they were scraps. Just under five minutes in the season-opening loss in New Orleans, nine minutes against the Bucks, 7:07 against the Thunder, less than three minutes in Memphis, 4:06 against the Magic, then a DNP-coach\u2019s decision in Brooklyn.<\/p>\n
It was tough love from coach Billy Donovan, and Buzelis accepted the challenge.<\/p>\n
Buzelis watched his November minutes increase to 12.9 per game, was up to 16.5 minutes through December and became a starter by February. The 11th overall pick never looked back. In his 31 starts, Buzelis averaged 13 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.1 blocks, saving his best for last.<\/p>\n
In his last 12 games \u2014 including the play-in loss to the Heat \u2014 Buzelis averaged 15.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks and shot 53.2% from the field and a team-best 50% from three-point range.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a reason ESPN just listed Buzelis No. 4 on a list of \u201cMost Interesting Sophomores to Watch\u201d heading into the 2025-26 season, nestled behind Zaccharie Risacher, Stephon Castle and Reed Sheppard, but when breaking down those four players, it\u2019s easy to see why Buzelis could be carrying the most pressure and emerge as the top player in the class.<\/p>\n
Risacher is still playing second fiddle to Trae Young and Dyson Daniels in Atlanta, Castle could become a reserve with De\u2019Aaron Fox and rookie Dylan Harper in the mix and Sheppard could flash but is still a bit player behind Kevin Durant, Fred VanVleet and Alperen Sengun.<\/p>\n
Buzelis is the Bulls as of now.<\/p>\n
With contract uncertainty still swirling around Coby White and Josh Giddey, there\u2019s no player on the roster more important than Buzelis.<\/p>\n
And rightfully so \u2014 6-10 forwards aren\u2019t supposed to have the all-around skills Buzelis boasts. There\u2019s no reason that by the 2026-27 season, Buzelis isn\u2019t leading the Bulls in scoring, field-goal percentage and blocked shots while emerging as the top wing defender\/rim protector on the roster.<\/p>\n
And the Bulls should also be embracing that Buzelis has the swagger to back his game.<\/p>\n
He has gone from soft-talking, awkward rookie in his media sessions to a guy who oozes personality, making that transition quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wants to be great,\u201d teammate Ayo Dosunmu said of Buzelis in May.<\/p>\n
Karnisovas and the Bulls need him to be.<\/p>\n
With NBA teams looking to win the promotion jersey game this summer, the Bulls put their best foot forward by announcing that the retro black with red pinstripes from the MJ era were coming back.<\/p>\n
This has been a franchise where great NBA coaches have been made extinct by the hierarchy. It\u2019s not a great job and hasn\u2019t been for decades. Credit this front office for at least getting the coach right and buying into continuity.<\/p>\n
Donovan has a 195-205 (.488) record in his five seasons as coach of the Bulls.<\/p>\n
The Bulls have several players on the fringe of All-Star status, but only one has a chance to be elite. That’s the weight Buzelis carries for the franchise and the front office.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":88049,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-88048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"\n