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Matas Buzelis

Chicago Bulls · #14 · Rotation
PF6'8"209 lbage 212 yrs exp
5th best of 13 on CHIworth +1.2 wins to the rotation
OFF73DEF74
Elite rim protector & interior finisher
CHI
Chicago Bulls
Eastern · Central · proj. 32-50 (▲+12.2)
→

A long, fluid forward and one of Chicago's brightest young pieces, popping for 16.3 points and a stout 1.5 blocks while finishing inside and swatting shots at an elite rate (94th-percentile rim protection). At 21 the playmaking and the three (34.9%) are still cooking, but the two-way upside is obvious and the arrow is pointing straight up.

16.3
PPG
5.8
RPG
2.1
APG
0.7
SPG
1.5
BPG
GP 77MPG 29.2FG% 46.33P% 34.9FT% 78.6TS% 58.6USG% 22.8PER 14.8BPM -1VORP 0.5EPM +0.6
2025-26 regular season · bars are percentile at his position

NBA player ratings

0–99 · 2025-26 form
Rim protection98
Inside finishing85
Scoring81
Rebounding79
Shooting75
Perimeter defense65
Playmaking62

Skill ratings are 2025-26 per-game and advanced stats (Basketball-Reference) ranked 0–99 within position (guards vs guards, bigs vs bigs). Overall is anchored to EPM impact on a non-linear curve, nudged by these skills; Offense and Defense come from box plus-minus. A player who missed the latest season is shown from his most recent one.

Career

2024-25 to 2025-26 · 2 seasons
12.4
PPG
4.6
RPG
1.5
APG
157
GAMES
Points 1,940Win Shares 4.4Starts 108Best season 2025-26 · 16.3 ppg

Regular season, 2003-04 onward (Basketball-Reference). Averages are weighted by games played; honours count awards won, not finishes. “Current players” means the 802 who played in the last three seasons.

Trajectory

2024-25 → 2025-26 · age 20 → 21
▲Rising

Matas, at 21, is on a clear upward trajectory — 0.8 → 2.1 wins of value over the window.

Age curve▲ Ahead of curve
Developing faster than a typical player his age.
2026-27 forecast▲ 4.6 wins (+2.5)
Starts from his player rating, which is higher than last season's total. Age should add a little at 22. Range 3.8–5.4 wins.
Production (BPM)-2.5 → -1.0+1.526-27 forecast -0.9
His per-possession game has clearly sharpened.
2024-25: -2.5 · 80 games2025-26: -1.0 · 77 games2026-27: -0.9 (forecast)24-2525-2626-27
Value to team (wins)0.8 → 2.1+1.326-27 forecast 4.6
He's worth more wins to a team than he was.
2024-25: 0.8 · 80 games2025-26: 2.1 · 77 games2026-27: 4.6 (forecast)24-2525-2626-27
Contract value2026-27: worth $13.7M vs $5.7M salary+$8.0M
His play is projected to be worth more than he is paid.
$5.7M salary2024-25: $2.5M · 80 games2025-26: $4.7M · 77 games2026-27: $13.7M (forecast)24-2525-2626-27
Current deal: $5,715,360 cap hit · through '28. On the contract row the flat dashed line is this salary, so the gap to the 2026-27 forecast is the surplus.

Seasons from Basketball-Reference (2024-25 → 2025-26). Production is box plus-minus, a per-possession measure. Value is VORP-based wins, so it also counts games played. Contract value is what each season’s play would fetch on the open market. The dotted 2026-27 point is a forecast: his established level, a year older, assuming a normal season.

Contract

2026-27
$5,715,360Team option
4% of the club’s payroll · 11th of 14 priced deals
Runs through2 seasons
Est. market value$13,676,000 /yr
Surplus+$7,960,640
BARGAINworth more than he is paid

Market value is an estimate, not a reported figure: what his play is forecast to fetch on the open market in 2026-27 — his current rating, a year older. Cap thresholds are projected for 2026-27 until the league sets them.

Plays like

same position

Nearest skill profiles across the seven rating axes — who he plays like, not who is as good. The rating beside each name answers that second question.