By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
From working his way into the rotation of the Chicago Bulls to quickly earning a spot in the starting lineup of Billy Donovan, Matas Buzelis is also adding himself to the list of players considered for the NBA Rookie of the Year distinction.
Keeping the award in Europe, following French prodigy Victor Wembanyama winning it last season, the 20-year-old Lithuanian forward of the Chicago Bulls is facing an uphill battle down the stretch of the 2024-25 Regular Season, compared to other rookies.
“Most definitely, I would like to win that award, for sure,” he opened up about the challenge during a media session on Wednesday, shortly following his participation in the AT&T Slam Dunk and Rising Stars Challenge of the All-Star weekend, “I also want to win as many games as possible, but if you win the games you’ll be in that conversation.”
Over the last ten games, he is up to 12.7 points and 3.8 rebounds per contest, boosting respective season averages to 6.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.
“I can definitely make a run for it. I definitely believe that and I’m going to manifest it,” he added on a late bid for the Rookie of the Year award, “I’m confident. It’s about getting stops on defense, running, being a two-way player, finding my teammates. The ball finds energy. That’s what I’m going to do.”
At 22-34, the Bulls rank tenth in the Eastern Conference, at the bottom end of the Play-In zone.