Limited options have forced Billy Donovan to use Matas Buzelis at power forward, but the Bulls coach has been finding ways to move him back to his natural position of small forward, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times (subscription required). Buzelis continued to start at the four in Friday’s win at Cleveland, but he saw time at both spots as Donavan employed a double-big lineup for much of the game.
“In fairness to Matas, there are matchups that are tough,” Donovan said. “He’s a second-year player that’s only going to get stronger, bigger and as he matures those matchups will be probably easier physically. When he is having to go hypothetically against a Julius Randle or a (Evan) Mobley, someone like that, those guys are playing close to the basket and they’re really physical. Those are tough matchups for a second-year player like Matas. So if you can get him to the small forward for some of the game — not all of the game — I don’t mind playing Matas with two bigs. I never looked at Matas as a big.”
Donovan has been experimenting with the two-center approach recently, often teaming up Zach Collins and Jalen Smith or putting one of them on the court alongside Nikola Vucevic. Cowley notes that he tried a jumbo lineup on Friday, playing Buezelis and Patrick Williams together along with two big men.
Buzelis told reporters he prefers being a small forward, but said he’ll handle whatever assignment Donovan gives him.
“Wherever he puts me I’m going to do my best and try to work it out,” Buzelis said. “But I do feel comfortable when the two bigs come in. It’s not really a problem for me. Wherever he puts me I’m going to try and make something happen.”
There’s more on the Bulls:
- Collins and Smith have complementary skills that are vital in making the two-big strategy effective, Cowley states in a separate story. “I think the coaches have done a better job of making it so when we’re out there, we know what our roles are, both of us,” Collins said. “Him to space more and me to be more around the rim, and then just constant conversation between me and (Smith). Those are the roles we want to stick to, but there are opportunities where if he’s ahead of the ball, he can run and I can space, and we’ve just tried to keep the communication. That’s the biggest difference.”
- Apart from first-round pick Noa Essengue, who underwent season-ending shoulder surgery two weeks ago, the Bulls had a fully healthy roster on Friday, Cowley adds. Ayo Dosunmu and Tre Jones were both listed as questionable coming into the game, but they were able to play on minutes restrictions.
- Vucevic admits being “definitely frustrated, mainly at me” as he and the team swooned after a fast start, but he’s looked more like the early-season version of himself lately, Cowley relays in another piece. After delivering 24 points and 15 rebounds on Friday, Vucevic said the Bulls benefitted from a relaxed schedule while the NBA Cup was being decided. “Those (days off) after Cup play were huge,” he said. “We were able to regroup, and it also helped me refresh a little bit, recalibrate and just play my game.”