Matas Buzelis Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bulls Notes: Front Office, Rose, Buzelis, Williams

August 30th, 2025 at 2:23pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Bulls have been mired in mediocrity for the past three seasons, finishing with middling records a shade below .500 and failing to advance out of the play-in tournament each year.

With that in mind, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times (subscriber link) takes stock of whether or not Chicago has an actionable strategy for lifting the club out of its plight long-term. Cowley calls out president Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley for having “no real plan” for bringing in an All-Star-caliber player this summer, either through free agency or a trade.

There’s more out of the Windy City:

On January 24 this season, the Bulls will retire the No. 1 jersey of former 2011 MVP guard Derrick Rose, who called it a career last summer. Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic asserts that Rose is worthy of such an honor despite only spending eight seasons — including two years almost entirely lost due to injury from 2012-14 — in Chicago. Lorenzi observes that Rose, a Chicago native and former MVP, will be just the fifth Bulls player to have his jersey retired, along with Michael Jordan‘s No. 23, Scottie Pippen‘s No. 33, Jerry Sloan‘s No. 4, and Bob Love‘s No. 10.
In lieu of landing an established star, the Bulls are counting on 2025 All-Rookie Second Team forward Matas Buzelis to emerge as their star of the future, Lorenzi observes in the same story.
Just a year after being signed to a five-year, $90MM deal, Bulls forward Patrick Williams finds himself in a tenuous standing with Chicago, Lorenzi writes as he considers what the next step is for the Bulls and the former No. 4 overall pick. The club’s lone trade this summer, for another defense-first young forward in Isaac Okoro, could make Williams somewhat expendable if he doesn’t take a step forward this fall.

Central Notes: Hunter, Langdon, Buzelis

August 11th, 2025 at 7:49pm CST by Dana Gauruder

De’Andre Hunter started on a regular basis during his first five seasons in the league with the Hawks. In 64 combined games with Atlanta and the Cavaliers last season, he started just nine games in 64 games.

Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor (subscription required) argues that Cleveland should keep Hunter in a reserve role. He notes that with Ty Jerome signing with Memphis, the Cavaliers need another high-scoring sixth man and points to Hunter as the most logical candidate — he averaged 17 points in 27.2 minutes per game last season.

Hunter may be more talented than Max Strus, the other candidate to start at small forward, but Hunter is not the best stylistic fit with the starting five, Fedor opines. The Cavs beat writer also points out that Hunter has shown he’s comfortable coming off the bench, as he receives more freedom and has an expanded offensive role.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

In his second season as the Pistons’ president of basketball operations, Trajan Langdon has continued to make personnel decisions with the desire to keep his options open for future moves, Pistons.com’s Keith Langlois writes. Langdon added Duncan Robinson and Caris LeVert to fortify his bench without sacrificing future flexibility and it’s likely that he’ll only reach rookie scale extensions agreements with Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren before the October deadline if the contract numbers match their on-court contributions.
By all accounts, Matas Buzelis wants to be a special player and is doing what is necessary to reach that status, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. With contract issues surrounding Coby White and Josh Giddey, the second-year Bulls forward has become the most important player on the roster. After averaging 22.5 points and 5.0 rebounds in two Summer League contests, Buzelis has been busy in the weight room and on the court, looking to expand his game.
Former Magic guard Cole Anthony spoke about his excitement to join the Bucks. Get the details here.

Central Notes: Pistons Offseason, Robinson, Buzelis, Prince

July 23rd, 2025 at 12:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

There’s still some unfinished business for the Pistons this offseason, Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press writes in a subscriber-only story.

They could use a proven floor-spacer who can play power forward after trading Simone Fontecchio. Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland could attempt to fill that role behind starter Tobias Harris, but they’re undersized for that position.

The Pistons have a $14.3MM trade exception at their disposal, courtesy of their sign-and-trade transaction with Sacramento involving Dennis Schröder. They could use it in a variety of ways but don’t necessarily need to take advantage of it this offseason, since it doesn’t expire until next summer, Sankofa notes. They also must try to finalize rookie scale extensions with starters Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey.

We have more from the Central Division:

Acquired by the Pistons in a sign-and-trade with Miami, Duncan Robinson told Hunter Patterson of The Athletic that he works on the mental aspects of the game as much as his physical skills. “Having resilience has been, sort of, the calling card of who I aspire to be,” he said. “I’m a big believer in that, learning how to deal with setbacks and challenges is a skill as much as shooting or dribbling. And the skill is honed and acquired through repetition. The only way you can get better at dealing with it is having gone through it. So, that’s one area of my career where I feel like I’ve been very fortunate is that from a young age. … I was challenged early on, (asking myself), ‘Is this what you want to do? Is this what you want to be?’ And I always just kept coming back to, ‘Yeah, I mean, this is. I love basketball more than anything. It’s what I do, not necessarily who I am. But in terms of the game itself, it’s given me more than I ever could imagine.”
During his second NBA season, Bulls forward Matas Buzelis will be tasked with initiating the offense and being a creator much more often than he was as a rookie, according to Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune. Buzelis got a taste of that during his two Summer League games, as plays were drawn up for him with that in mind. “Being a primary, secondary ball handler is like second nature to me,” he said. “I used to play (point guard) when I was younger, so it’s not really anything new to me. I think it’s just going to get better with time.”
Forward Taurean Prince waived his implied no-trade clause in his two-year, veteran’s minimum contract with the Bucks, Spotrac contributor Keith Smith tweets. Prince signed the contract earlier this month. As Smith explains, Prince had an implied no-trade clause because the second year includes a player option and and he would lose his Early Bird rights if he’s traded and opts out.

Bulls Notes: Essengue, Buzelis, Giddey, Primo

July 12th, 2025 at 11:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

After Friday’s disastrous Summer League debut, Bulls rookie Noa Essengue looked more comfortable with the level of competition on Saturday, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times.

The 12th overall pick was overmatched in his first game, scoring five points in nearly 25 minutes, posting a minus-32 rating and saying he was “surprised” by the level of physicality he encountered. Although he didn’t dominate in today’s loss to Sacramento, Essemgie probably calmed a few nerves throughout the organization with 12 points and 10 rebounds in about 19 minutes before being pulled from the game with an injury.

“Definitely better,” Summer League coach Billy Donovan III said. “He definitely wasn’t thinking as much, kept the dribbles down and I thought he was decisive. I think he’ll get better and better. They’re calling it a knee contusion right now, so he’ll get treatment on Sunday and see how he responds to it.”

Essengue appeared to hurt his right leg while working his way over a screen in the third quarter, according to K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network (Twitter link). Donovan said team trainers indicated there was knee-to-knee contact, adds Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic (Twitter link).

“I don’t know, I just took a hit,” Essengue said (Twitter link). “We’re gonna see how it feels the next few days. Go through treatment and all that.”

There’s more on the Bulls:

Matas Buzelis seems more like a veteran in his second Summer League experience, Cowley adds in a separate story. In addition to being bigger and stronger than he was at the end of last season, Buzelis has become a more vocal leader with his teammates. He sat out today’s game after hurting his wrist by dunking the ball “a little too hard” on Friday, but he told reporters that he’ll be ready when the Bulls return to action on Monday, per Johnson (Twitter link).
Josh Giddey is in Las Vegas, but he hasn’t been seen at either of the Bulls’ games, tweets Jake Fischer of The Stein Line. Fischer views it as a sign that negotiations on a new contract aren’t going well. Giddey and his representatives are reportedly hoping for $30MM a year, but the market for restricted free agents has been dormant, leaving him without much leverage.
Joshua Primo, a 2021 lottery pick, was hoping to revive his career with the Bulls’ Summer League team, but left foot soreness prevented him from making the trip to Las Vegas, according to Johnson (Twitter link). The 22-year-old swingman signed an Exhibit 10 contract with Chicago last October but didn’t make the regular season roster and didn’t play at all during a brief stint with the Windy City Bulls in the G League.

Summer League Notes: Bulls, Kawamura, Kings, Brink, Jent

July 3rd, 2025 at 2:10pm CST by Rory Maher

The Bulls officially announced their 2025 summer league roster on Thursday afternoon (via Twitter). The group is headlined by recent lottery picks Matas Buzelis and Noa Essengue, plus two-way players Jahmir Young and Emanuel Miller and No. 55 overall pick Lachlan Olbrich, who is expected to sign a two-way deal with Chicago.

The Bulls’ summer league squad also features a handful of unrestricted free agents who have NBA experience. Japanese point guard Yuki Kawamura, who spent 2024/25 (his rookie campaign) on a two-way deal with the Grizzlies, is part of the team, as is ex-Grizzlies forward Maozinha Pereira. Former lottery pick Joshua Primo and guard Javon Freeman-Liberty are on the 14-man roster as well.

Windy City Bulls head coach Billy Donovan III will lead the summer league team for the second consecutive year, tweets K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network.

Here are few more notes related to summer league:

Both of the Kings‘ draft picks — first-rounder Nique Clifford and second-rounder Maxime Raynaud — will compete in summer league action, GM Scott Perry said today at a press conference (Twitter link via Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee). Kings head coach Doug Christie said assistant Dipesh Mistry will be the summer league team’s top coach, as Anderson relays (via Twitter).
Jordan Brink, an assistant on former head coach Tom Thibodeau‘s staff, will be head coach of the Knicks‘ summer league team, reports James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Edwards, Brink was “largely responsible” for New York’s impressive success rate on challenges last season. Given that he’s leading the summer league squad, it seems pretty likely that Brink will be a member of new coach Mike Brown‘s staff, though that’s just informed speculation and hasn’t been confirmed.
Assistant Chris Jent will serve as head coach of the Hornets‘ summer league club, per Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter video link). Jent is a longtime NBA assistant and former player who joined Charles Lee‘s staff last year.

Central Notes: Pistons Approach, Pistons Draft, Portis, Buzelis

June 17th, 2025 at 6:11pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Magic traded major assets to acquire Desmond Bane. Should the Pistons make a similar move at this stage?

According to Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press (subscription required), Detroit may be more patient because of its financial situation. As Sankofa points out, Orlando has already signed multiple players to big extensions, which will lead to a large payroll beginning next season. Other than Cade Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart, the Pistons’ front office has yet to give out lucrative extensions to its young players. That buys them more time to lean on player development, rather than taking a big swing on the trade market.

Here’s more on the Central Division:

On a smaller scale, the Pistons could look to make a trade if they wish to move into the first round. Their first-round pick was sent to Minnesota but, as Sankofa points out, there are a few teams with multiple first-rounders who may be looking to move one or more of those picks. Detroit has 14 future second-rounders at its disposal to dangle in order to move into the first round. The Nets, Thunder and Magic are among the teams with late first-rounders that could be available.
Don’t expect Bobby Portis to give the Bucks a discount in free agency. “Obviously, I would love to be back in Milwaukee,” he said on the Run It Back podcast. “I’m not saying I don’t want to come back to the Bucks—I would love to—but I just want to be compensated fairly, man. I’ve taken a lot of team-friendly deals to be here. We’re at a point now where I feel like it’s time I get compensated—fairly—to my peers. That’s all I ask for.” Portis holds a $13.4MM option on his contract for next season but his comments strongly indicate he’ll opt out. Portis was suspended 25 games by the league this season for using a banned drug, but was effective when he played, with averages of 13.9 points and 8.4 rebounds per game.
Matas Buzelis met up in Los Angeles with a few of his Bulls teammates earlier this month for workouts and scrimmages. Buzelis has added muscle and looks ready to become a dominant player, according to guard Ayo Dosunmu. “Matas is a hard worker, a tremendous worker,” Dosunmu told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times. “He loves the work. I have high praises for him, high expectations for him. I’m seeing him in person, him getting stronger. He’s starting to realize how strong he is and how he’s able to dominate. I know Giannis is a Hall of Famer, top 20, top 30 player [all time], but Matas has a chance to really dominate the game like that because he’s 6-10, 6-11, and as he continues to get stronger, continues to get in the weight room, he’s only going to get bigger.”

Sixers Notes: Yabusele, Draft, Oubre, Grimes, McCain

June 8th, 2025 at 10:46am CST by Arthur Hill

Guerschon Yabusele accepted a one-year, minimum-salary contract with the Sixers when he decided to return to the NBA, and his performance on that deal has him positioned for a much bigger payday this summer as an unrestricted free agent. The 29-year-old power forward talked about his experience during a recent interview with Basketball Network (hat tip to Souichi Terada of MassLive).

“The main thing, for me, when I decided to go back to the NBA was to enjoy this time,” Yabusele said. “Because the first time, when it stopped, and you realize it’s done fast. It took me five years to come back. So I really decided the main thing was to go over there to enjoy and gain that experience and try to get better. I was happy that I was able to perform.”

Yabusele was a first-round pick by the Celtics in 2016 and came stateside a year later, but he wasn’t able to earn consistent playing time during his two seasons in Boston. He developed into a star with Real Madrid in the EuroLeague, then rekindled NBA interest with a strong showing while representing France in last year’s Summer Olympics.

Philadelphia had a difficult season, but team-wide injury woes gave Yabusele plenty of opportunity to display his skills. He appeared in 70 games, making 43 starts and averaging 11.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 27.1 minutes per night with .501/.380/.725 shooting numbers.

“It was a good season,” he said. “All the ups and downs. I was able to go out there and really experience, for the first time, being in the league.”

There’s more from Philadelphia:

The Sixers’ decision with the No. 3 pick will have huge implications for the teams drafting directly behind them, notes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Rutgers forward Ace Bailey is frequently linked with Philadelphia in mock drafts, but Baylor guard V.J. Edgecombe and Texas guard Tre Johnson could be in the mix as well, with some scouts viewing them as better long-term prospects than Bailey. The Sixers may also consider trading down — one executive told Pompey that a couple of teams slotted after Philadelphia are conducting “heavy research” on the possibility of moving up to No. 3.
In the same piece, Pompey states that forward Kelly Oubre is expected to pick up his $8.3MM player option for next season. That echoes a report from Marc Stein last month. Pompey also hears that the Sixers are optimistic about their chances of re-signing free agent guard Quentin Grimes, who averaged 21.9 PPG after being acquired from Dallas in February.
Rookie guard Jared McCain covered Game 1 of the NBA Finals as part of the league’s Player Correspondent Program. The endeavor provides experience for players who may be interested in media careers after retirement. Miami’s Jaime Jaquez, Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels and Chicago’s Matas Buzelis are also participating this year.

NBA Announces 2024/25 All-Rookie Teams

May 20th, 2025 at 1:04pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has officially revealed its All-Rookie teams for the 2024/25 season (Twitter links). The First Team is made up the top two picks in the 2024 draft, a pair of Grizzlies, and this season’s Rookie of the Year, while the Second Team is heavy on centers.

A panel of 100 media members selected the All-Rookie teams, with players earning two points for a First Team vote and one point for a Second Team nod. The 10 players who made the cut, along with their corresponding point totals (Twitter link), are as follows:

First Team

Stephon Castle, Spurs (200 points)
Zaccharie Risacher, Hawks (199)
Jaylen Wells, Grizzlies (195)
Zach Edey, Grizzlies (173)
Alex Sarr, Wizards (150)

Second Team

Kel’el Ware, Heat (138)
Matas Buzelis, Bulls (97)
Yves Missi, Pelicans (90)
Donovan Clingan, Trail Blazers (73)
Bub Carrington, Wizards (53)

There are no real surprises on the First Team. Castle was the recipient of this season’s Rookie of the Year and was also the only player to be unanimously selected to the First Team, but fellow Rookie of the Year finalists Risacher and Wells weren’t far behind him. Edey and Sarr played significant roles for their respective teams and also finished in the top five in Rookie of the Year voting.

Among the members of the Second Team, Ware and Buzelis finished sixth and seventh in Rookie of the Year voting, while Missi, Clingan, and Carrington became starters for their respective teams in their first NBA seasons.

Carrington just narrowly edged out Jazz guard Isaiah Collier, who received one First Team vote and 50 Second Team votes for a total of 52 points. Carrington technically showed up on fewer overall ballots, but gained the slight edge because he was selected to the First Team by three voters (he was named to the Second Team by 47).

A total of 23 players showed up on at least one voter’s ballot, with Jazz forward/center Kyle Filipowski, Pistons forward Ron Holland, Lakers forward Dalton Knecht, and Suns wing Ryan Dunn rounding out the top 15 vote-getters — they, along with Collier, would’ve made up a hypothetical All-Rookie Third Team if the league recognized 15 players like it does for All-NBA.

All-Rookie is one of the few awards that doesn’t require players to meet the 65-game minimum and certain minutes-played thresholds. Risacher, Edey, Ware, Buzelis, and Clingan each would have been ineligible for consideration if that rule applied to All-Rookie voting.

Central Notes: Giddey, Ball, Jones, Buzelis, Pistons, Sims

April 15th, 2025 at 8:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Bulls guard Josh Giddey is dealing with a muscle issue on the side of his hand but he’s expected to suit up for the play-in game against Miami on Wednesday, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network reports.

“It’s just about managing the pain,” Giddey said, adding that the injury will be addressed in the offseason (Twitter links).

Giddey can’t imagine watching Wednesday’s game in street clothes.

“I’m good to go,” he said, per Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune. “Play-in game, must-win game, there’s not way I’m going to sit out.”

Lonzo Ball (wrist) and Tre Jones (foot) won’t play.

We have more from the Central Division:

Bulls rookie Matas Buzelis plans to play for the Lithuanian national team, but he’s unsure about representing his country this offseason. “I’m not sure that I will come this summer. We have problems with the coaches,” he told Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops.net, referring to controversial comments by an assistant coach of the senior national team, Tomas Pacesas. “I have to talk to Jonas [Valanciunas], Domantas [Sabonis] and see what they will do.” Lithuania will participate in the EuroBasket tournament this summer. Sabonis is expected to sit out for personal reasons, while Valanciunas is expected to play.
The Pistons apparently don’t want Little Caesars Arena to have a large continent of Knicks fans during the first round of the playoffs, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post writes. Potential ticket buyers for upcoming playoff games in Detroit must produce a credit card with a mailing address “located in Michigan and in certain parts of Ohio, Indiana and Ontario, Canada,” according to Ticketmaster. However, a Pistons spokesman told Bondy that the restrictions are intended to target ticket brokers and reduce fraud.
Bucks coach Doc Rivers is “pretty sure” reserve big man Jericho Sims will be available for their opening-round series against Indiana. Sims participated in a majority of Tuesday’s practice, Eric Nehm of The Athletic tweets. He hasn’t played since March 16 due to a thumb injury.

And-Ones: Howard, Rookies, Stanley, Europe

April 10th, 2025 at 4:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Officially announced last weekend as a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame’s 2025 class, longtime NBA star Dwight Howard has decided to play one more season of professional basketball in the BIG3, as first reported by Chris Haynes (Twitter link).

The BIG3 – the 3-on-3 league created by Ice Cube – officially issued a press release on Wednesday confirming that Howard has signed on to play for the Los Angeles Riot this summer.

Howard will team up with former NBA guard Jordan Crawford and former USC standout Elijah Stewart under head coach Nick Young. While Howard played for the Wizards like Crawford and the Lakers like Young, he didn’t overlap with either player during their stints in Washington and Los Angeles.

“I’m excited to join Ice Cube and the BIG3 – especially right after being inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame,” Howard said in a statement. “Words can’t describe how grateful I am for these opportunities. I can’t wait to join the L.A. Riot and try to bring another championship to the city of LA. But, the ultimate goal I have is to help the league go global.”

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

In the final 2024/25 installment of his rookie rankings, Jeremy Woo of ESPN.com (Insider link) places Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher atop his list, writing that the French forward is delivering on his top-pick status. Spurs guard Stephon Castle, Grizzlies center Zach Edey, Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan, and Bulls forward Matas Buzelis round out the top five in Woo’s rankings, in that order.
Former Pacers and Pistons guard Cassius Stanley has signed with ESSM Le Portel for the rest of the season, the French club announced in a press release (hat tip to Sportando). Stanley, who was in the NBA from 2020-22, was playing in the G League for the Valley Suns this season.
In the wake of EuroLeague shareholders meeting this week to discuss the future of the league and the NBA’s potential foray into European basketball, the EuroLeague Players Association issued a statement calling for “united efforts” to grow the game on the continent, as BasketNews.com relays. “Despite significant progress, it must be acknowledged that there is still much work to be done to unravel the true potential of European club basketball,” the statement reads, in part. “That potential is lost when the relevant leagues, clubs and governing bodies do not work harmoniously, but seemingly against each other, without consideration for the perspective of players and fans who are the lifeblood of any competition.”