The Chicago Bulls' first visit to Orlando this season to face the Magic is a special moment for big man Nikola Vucevic. After all, this is the first time he'll be facing off against the Magic since he was traded to Chicago from Orlando. Because of that, the All-Star big man couldn't help but reminisce about his former team.

Speaking with the Chicago Sun-Times, Vuvecic talked about his feelings towards the team that drafted him a year after his trade. He said:

“Yeah, it wasn’t a situation where they traded me out of nowhere… It was something that we discussed a lot and it was mutually agreed… A lot of it came from my communication with them, so it wasn’t a surprise for me… Never will I ever have any bad feelings toward Orlando. It will always be positive. It was time for the team to go in a different direction. It was time for something new to happen.”

Vucevic was drafted by the Orlando Magic in 2011 with the 16th overall pick. There, he built a solid reputation as one of the better big men in the league, earning a few All-Star nods along the way. However, his performance just wasn't enough to carry the team out of playoff purgatory, so he was eventually traded to the Bulls mid-season.

In his first full season with the new-look Bulls, Vucevic has been a solid presence for the team down low. He's averaging a double-double of 13.7 points and 11.1 rebounds along with 4.3 assists, deferring to the dynamic duo of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. The Magic, on the other hand have embraced the tank, putting all their chips into rookie Jalen Suggs.

The Bulls' matchup with the Magic will also be Nikola Vucevic's second game back after dealing with COVID-19. Expect that night to be an emotional one for Vooch.