The Chicago Bulls are in a rebuilding phase in 2025-26, but that didn't stop them from getting in the win column on opening night. In front of a packed crowd at the United Center, the Bulls picked up a 115-111 win over the Detroit Pistons to get going in the right direction this season.
Nikola Vucevic starred for the Bulls, finishing with 28 points and 14 rebounds to lead all scorers. However, he got plenty of help from his second-year teammate Matas Buzelis, who racked up 21 points and six boards in the win. After the game, Vucevic gave Buzelis a strong endorsement and claimed he reminds him of some of the greats, via Cody Westerlund of 670 The Score.
“What I really like about him is he has a little bit of cockiness in him, but not in a bad way,” Vucevic said. “He just has belief, which all the great ones do have. Obviously, he still has to continue to work, but I think he’s taken huge steps from last season.”
Buzelis has a versatile skillset and a lot of potential after the Bulls took him in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, so it's good to see him get off to a good start this season. If he can emerge as a true franchise centerpiece for this Bulls squad moving forward, this season can be viewed as a success no matter what the final win-loss record ends up being.
However, after this showing in the first game of the year against a team that went to the playoffs last season, the Bulls will have their eyes on a playoff berth this year. They have other promising young pieces around Buzelis, and they played without point guard Coby White on Wednesday night as he works his way back from a calf injury.
On top of that, Vucevic can still carry the load offensively at times with his ability to score at all three levels of the floor. If Buzelis can step up as another go-to guy that Chicago can rely on each and every night, this could be a sneaky competitive team in the Eastern Conference.
