x
Matas Buzelis in elite company with this stat

The Chicago Bulls continue to hang around the top 10 of the NBA lottery for the upcoming draft after reshaping the roster at the trade deadline. But it’s clear the team is going to build around Matas Buzelis, a first-round pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.

While the Bulls appear years away from completing their rebuild, Buzelis continues to show flashes of his potential. His second season in the league is a good step forward in terms of his development and what it means moving forward. And on Monday night, Buzelis joined some really rare and elite company this season by hitting a few milestones.

Matas Buzelis is in elite company this season


Mar 16, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey (3) and forward Matas Buzelis (14) high five during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images

The Bulls were able to take care of business against the Memphis Grizzlies at the United Center. It hurt their NBA lottery position as they will likely not be able to catch the Grizzlies for the 8th spot in the lottery. They are also just a half game ahead of the Bucks who are 10th.

But it was Buzelis performance that really stood out. He finished the game with 29 points and 7 rebounds as the team was +27 with him on the floor last night. He also drained five three-pointers and had three blocks in the game. With that, he reached 100 blocks and 100 made three-pointers on the year, joining only Victor Wembanyama as the only two players in the NBA to do that this season.

That’s a pretty impressive feat for Buzelis in his second season.

Now, ideally you want the Bulls to lose and tank to get a higher draft pick. But in reality, they waited too long to do that and are probably going to miss out on a top player in a loaded draft.

The bright spot right now is Buzelis, who continues to have a big second season in the league. Building around him is what the Bulls want to do and if he gets better and better, it’s great for the Bulls.

This article first appeared on ChiCitySports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads:

Customize Your Newsletter

Yardbarker +

Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!