The Chicago Bulls can count their lucky stars (not something fans feel like they can say too often) that 10 teams passed on Matas Buzelis in the 2024 NBA Draft. The Illinois native was projected to be a top-five pick at several points in the pre-draft process and fell right into the Bulls' laps at pick No. 11.
The 20-year-old had a slow start to his rookie season as he fought to earn head coach Billy Donovan's trust, but Buzelis showed glimpses of his potential throughout the year. On Nov. 6, he played 22 minutes, scoring 13 points and grabbing nine rebounds. He had 20 points, five rebounds and two blocks on Dec. 2. Then things clicked on Jan. 29.
Buzelis scored in double figures in eight straight games and 15 of 17. Over that stretch, he averaged 13.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.1 blocks on 49.4 percent shooting. He went on to start the final 31 games of the season and continued to flash the kind of positional size, athleticism, explosiveness and aggressive mentality that made him a lottery pick to begin with.
But it's more than just those traits that could help him unlock the Bulls' future.
Matas Buzelis's versatility key to Bulls' rebuild
Buzelis's one season with the G League Ignite was marked by flashes of stardom and inefficiency. He showed off the kind of size and physical traits that drew teams to his potential, but he shot just 44.8 percent from the field and 27.3 percent from deep over his 26 games. Those shooting percentages are part of what scared teams off in the draft.
His 45/36/82 splits as a rookie have assuaged those concerns for Chicago. But it's Buzelis's positional versatility that could help the franchise retool the roster.
The Ignite product spent 71 percent of his minutes in his rookie campaign at the power forward position, per Cleaning the Glass. As a team, the Bulls were generally better when Buzelis played next to a center like Nikola Vucevic or Zach Collins. However, certain offensive statistics indicate that Chicago has a stronger offense, and Buzelis is more effective individually when he plays at small forward.
He spent only 28 percent of his minutes at that spot, but the Bulls, who relied heavily on their up-tempo transition game, were 3.8 points better per 100 possessions with Buzelis at the three in those situations, which ranked in the 82nd percentile across the NBA.
Chicago also had more transition opportunities, scored more efficiently on the fast break and was among the best teams in the league at finishing transition plays with Buzelis playing next to two bigs.
Again, it's hard to glean long-term trends from such a small sample size, but certain lineups that featured shooters surrounding Buzelis at the three and Patrick Williams at the four were prolific offensively. With Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu and Vucevic flanking those two, the Bulls averaged 180.0 points per 100 possessions. Chicago was plus-56.1 with Zach Collins at center and White and Talen Horton-Tucker in the backcourt next to Buzelis and Williams.
The most common lineup that featured Buzelis at the three was a group that included White and Kevin Huerter in the backcourt, with another athletic wing in Julian Phillips and Vucevic up front. That group played 45 minutes together and was a plus-48.6, doing most of its damage on the defensive end, allowing just 89.1 points per 100 possessions.
White, Huerter and Vucevic aren't known as great defenders, so the combination of Buzelis and Phillips as two tall, long, athletic and explosive wings who could cover that lineup's defensive deficiencies shows it's not just on offense where Buzelis can thrive at the three.
It's worth repeating that these are all small sample sizes. However, it's also notable how much better the Bulls could be defensively and in transition with Buzelis playing on the wing, as opposed to in the frontcourt, depending on who shares the floor with him.
This versatility should allow Chicago's front office to add different archetypes of players without pigeonholing Buzelis into one position. He can continue to develop as a jumbo wing next to shooters or defenders, as well as a typical four. It opens multiple doors for the Bulls and Donovan.
