Buzelis sits much higher on teams\u2019 scouting reports than when he was simply hoping to stick in Donovan\u2019s rotation. He can feel it.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of the time, the best defender is guarding me,\u201d Buzelis said. \u201cThat puts a target on my back, and I like that. That\u2019s how I\u2019m gonna get better and strive forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Buzelis doesn\u2019t feel blindsided. He sought guard Ayo Dosunmu, now in his fifth year, about the season-to-season shift from his fruitful rookie season. Dosunmu relayed that Buzelis wouldn\u2019t catch teams by surprise and that they\u2019d inspect his game with the detail it deserved.<\/p>\n
Flashes of promise still squeezed their way into Buzelis\u2019 first quarter of the season. The use of his length, his explosion, his nimble strides up the floor. His flaws also reared their heads: a handle too loose to frequently weave through traffic, a frame bigger forwards toss around like furniture, vulnerabilities on the glass and a tendency to lunge toward shots, even if it removes him from plays.<\/p>\n
For a regime sworn to internal development and against tanking, Buzelis is a beacon of hope. Fans pray he\u2019s polished. Prioritized. Properly nurtured, not neglected in favor of chasing the middle.<\/p>\n
Buzelis\u2019 development is fragile: the silent forces that mold him, the projections he\u2019s invited, veteran voices like Nikola Vu\u010devi\u0107 and Jevon Carter, habits \u2014 or lack thereof \u2014 being formed in Chicago\u2019s recent skid.<\/p>\n
Buzelis, despite being one of Chicago\u2019s few enviable assets, isn\u2019t being granted a blank canvas. Unlike Cooper Flagg in Dallas, this season is not Buzelis\u2019 playground. With different expectations for their teams and respective players \u2014 the Bulls haven\u2019t given up the framework suggesting they\u2019d like to slowly build toward a playoff team \u2014 Chicago isn\u2019t expediting Buzelis\u2019 development the way Dallas is with Flagg. From jump, Flagg gunned a healthy diet of midrange jumpers and got tossed into the fire as a point guard on a team that lacked ballhandling.<\/p>\n
Donovan, asked recently about his rationale for Buzelis\u2019 proverbial leash: \u201cIf he\u2019s playing well, he\u2019s probably gonna get more minutes. If he\u2019s not, then he\u2019s probably not.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond him, the roster\u2019s construction has undoubtedly played a role in Buzelis\u2019 trajectory this season. The big man \u2014 more notably, the double-big lineup \u2014 has fully reclaimed its stake in the NBA. In the interim, it has begged the question of which forward spot Buzelis is meant to play. His best attributes lend to him growing as a mismatch four, leaning on agility and explosion. But he often shares lineups with three guards (and an easily penetrable perimeter defense) and is virtually always next to a center not regarded as physical on the interior or as an overbearing rim protector.<\/p>\n
While he seeks ways to exact his physicality, Buzelis remains firm in his disposition that he doesn\u2019t need to undergo a dramatic, Giannis Antetokounmpo-esque physical transformation to do so, preferring his celerity.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere have been plenty of guys that maybe don\u2019t have, or look like, the old-school power forward, so to speak,\u201d Donovan said. \u201cThose decisions, to me, are just the decision to put your body in between the ball in the basket.\u201d<\/p>\n
Positioning and defensive discipline are Buzelis\u2019 focuses at this juncture. His timing and understanding of his own leeway, of where his hands and frame can be on a given play.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce I\u2019m in front of the ball, I feel like I can guard anybody,\u201d Buzelis said. \u201cThe physicality can always be better with anybody, honestly. It\u2019s about the consistency every day, coming ready to play and on point.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the other end, Buzelis is trying to blossom offensively within the confines of Donovan\u2019s recommended shot diet. The best ways he\u2019s incorporated his redeemable traits are in transition and as a cutter. As defenders get physical with him, Buzelis has room to maximize those traits in half-court settings.<\/p>\n
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\n Matas Buzelis (14) is a scoring threat for the Chicago Bulls and often draws tougher defenders, including DeMar DeRozan from the Sacramento Kings. (Kamil Krzaczynski \/ Imagn Images)<\/p>\n
Despite those who wish that no stone is left unturned in his growth \u2014 most notably as a three-level scorer \u2014 Donovan isn\u2019t prioritizing the midrange for Buzelis or anyone else\u2019s development, because \u201cit\u2019s the worst shot in the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s only, like, one or two players in the entire league that make midrange at a high-enough level to warrant even doing that,\u201d Donovan said. \u201cSo, him using his size and shooting those shots is not great. Now, I\u2019m great with it at the end of the clock. Five seconds to go, and he\u2019s got a manufacturer a shot late game. But during the course of the game, quite honestly, that\u2019s been part of our problem as a team.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want to make sure offensively, especially younger players, they\u2019re understanding how to play efficiently.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a recent appearance on Tommy Alter\u2019s \u201cThe Young Man and the Three\u201d podcast, Buzelis chuckled when recalling Donovan\u2019s ridicule after he took one such shot midway through his rookie season.<\/p>\n