The Young BULL-zelis: Evaluating Bulls Rookie Matas Buzelis

Buzelis fell down the team's draft boards due to his inefficient 3-point shooting in his one season with G-League Ignite. While with the team, he shot 22% from beyond the arc. This lack of success led to many organizations doubting his ability to shoot from long range. However, the Bulls saw past the numbers. In high school, Buzelis shot the 42% from distance. 

Along with his 3-point shooting potential, Buzelis showed his ability to have an immediate impact on the defensive end. Overall, the 11th overall pick has been a hit amongst Bulls fans. 

The Good

Buzelis shows more promise than Patrick Williams when comparing to other players on the roster. Buzelis is averaging 5.2 PPG and 2.7 RPG. However, these statistics don't fully capture Buzelis’ potential impact on the court. 

The rookie already has a 20-point game to go along with multiple outings where he has recorded steals and blocks. He is shooting 35% from 3-point range to start his rookie season as well. 

When Buzelis was given meaningful minutes, he showed why he should be a consistent role player in this Bulls' rotation. Buzelis has played in five games where he has logged over 20 minutes of action. In those five games, he has surpassed 10 points in three of those five. This doesn't even take his defensive prowess into account as a rookie either. 

Through 27 games, Buzelis has recorded at least a steal or block in 12 games. Head Coach Billy Donovan is beginning to realize how impactful Buzelis can be on the defensive end, playing him more with major pieces in the rotation. 

Stats and box scores do not paint the full picture of Buzelis' promise. He has provided highlight-reel plays, great help-side defense, and has shown the ability to get out and run with the likes of Josh Giddey and Lonzo Ball. 

The Bad 

To be quite honest, its tough to find a lot of negative takes on Buzelis in his first 27 games. There are some games where he is rather inefficient, but if you watch those games, there isn't a shot taken by Buzelis that should be considered poor. 

With Buzelis being a young rookie, he is prone to becoming a trash talker, potentially effecting his on-court play. That said, finding that juice from a young player when the veterans aren't fiery can really pay dividends to the morale of the team any given night.

The Future

Personally, its hard not to be a fan of the Matas Buzelis pick. Not only was it nice to see another Chicago native get drafted to their hometown team, but it gave the Bulls a clear direction going into the 2024-25 season. 

As many Bulls fans know, the team has been stuck in purgatory the last few seasons. Although drafting Buzelis does not lead to a full rebuild, he gives Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley a path to a youth movement in Chicago. 

Even if Buzelis does not develop into a franchise player, he's already shown flashes of being a great second or third option. The Bulls have many movable pieces to acquire draft capital, and expiring contracts that will open up cap space in the near future. Both of those factors could lead to the team bringing in franchise-changing talent in the near future.

With plenty of trade rumors circling around Zach Lavine, Nikola Vucevic, Torrey Craig, and even Patrick Williams, there is a chance that Buzelis can go from a bench player now to the starting five by February. 

With rookies such as Jared McCain sustaining injuries, and other rookies struggling in early NBA action, there's a chance that, with increased minutes, Matas Buzelis could push for All-Rookie First Team and possibly Rookie of the Year. 

As always... See Red!