Matas Buzelis has fully bought into the Bulls’ preference for physical, hard-nosed basketball – a style that head coach Billy Donovan has emphasized since the start of training camp.
As Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports, that shift didn’t happen overnight.
It started months earlier, when Buzelis devoted his offseason to getting stronger, adding 10 pounds of muscle so he could handle a larger on-court role and the demands that would come with it.
“I said before the season started that this would be a great year of growth for him because he’s going to see things he hasn’t seen his rookie season,” Donovan said. “The thing I love about Matas is he leans into it and he’s eager to improve.”
Now in his second year, the forward has responded to that challenge by elevating nearly all of his key numbers.
He’s averaging 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks while playing 27.8 minutes per game – a clear sign he’s becoming a central figure for Chicago.
With the added responsibility has come more defensive attention, something Buzelis says he welcomes.
“Most of the time the best defender is guarding me and that puts a target on my back,” Buzelis said. “I like that, that’s how I’m going to get better and stride forward.”
Bulls Notes: Buzelis, Essengue, Smith, Vucevic https://t.co/M1Q1yAZaXf pic.twitter.com/zJxB6BQ9fv
— Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors) November 24, 2025
