Chicago Bulls: What to Expect from Matas Buzelis in Year One

With the Bulls selecting the 6-foot-10 Lithuanian-American guard in June, he'll have plenty of leeway to showcase what he has to offer in his rookie season.

Jul 14, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis (14) awaits a free throw attempt against the Golden State Warriors during the fourth quarter at Thomas & Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports / Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Backpacking off Draft Digest's own Morten Stig Jensen's piece on Matas Buzelis a few weeks back, Chicago is a unique position after selecting Buzelis with the 11th overall pick in June.

A non-shooting, electric rim attacker with the fiestiness that the Bulls have not seen in quite some time, he could develop into an integral piece if the organization is able to foster a promising developmental environment around him. A 6-foot-10 guard hailing from the Windy City himself, he has the opportunity to carve out a role as a wiry, fearless scorer around the cup in the team's second unit.

A late lottery pick, Buzelis will be working behind Josh Giddey, who the team acquired in the offseason to provide a new avenue for playmaking and to run the offense -- Buzelis will likely emulate some of what Giddey has to offer in that lens, but his ability to crash to the rim like a madman makes him a much more confident, intimidating offensive threat. But it could also have him account for more errors.

Discovering and establishing that fine line of recklessness and conservatism is going to be a point of emphasis for Buzelis throughout his rookie campaign, figuring out what works and what doesn't, and how he can maximize his time on the floor without logging a great amount of play time night in and night out. But if he can find that tricky balance, he'll be trusted much more behind offensive initiators in Giddey and Coby White.

It''ll be a learning curve, but seeing what Buzelis offered in his five Summer League outings -- averaging a 16.4 points, though inefficient, on 29.7 minutes per game -- he has the promise to offer something valuable for this year's Bulls squad.

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