This Isn’t The Same Chicago Bulls Team The NBA Knows | Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis

This Isn’t The Same Chicago Bulls Team The NBA Knows | Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis

Right now, when you look at them, the Chicago Bulls could actually be two things all at once. Zoom out and you’ll see an organization that hasn’t won a playoff series in a decade, who’s finished yet another forgettable season as a ninth seated team, and who last season only had the 20th best net rating in the entire NBA. Though when you zoom in, you’ll see that the Bulls are finally dissolving a depressing win now era that was defined by in-house stagnation as the Demard Rosen and Zack Lavine star backcourt for the time being has been modernized by a 25-year-old Kobe White and a 22-year-old Josh Giddy. The changes brought about by this new era of the Bulls has been very much apparent on the floor. First, looking at it, for two straight seasons in 2023 and 2024, Chicago had the second lowest three-point rate across the NBA. But last season, 45% of the bullshot attempts came from behind the ark, which ranked fifth most in the entire league. Notably, no other team has made a bigger leap in terms of three-point shooting rate. The other difference can be seen in Chicago speed. In 2024, the Bulls only ranked 28th in the NBA in terms of offensive pace per game. But last season, the Bulls 102.8 offensive possessions per game ranked second most in the entire league. Basically, the drastic increase in the numbers are a testament to how the Chicago Bulls are now developing a new identity on the floor. One that wears opposing teams down and one which also fits the pace of the modern NBA much better. [Music] Well, having established a new identity doesn’t mean the Chicago Bulls don’t have questions to address in terms of their roster construction. But for now, the organization has definitely answered the biggest question of their off season by agreeing to sign Josh Giddy to a 4-year extension worth 100 million, which is a deal that can be defined as polarizing among Bulls fans and even NBA fans in general. Well, sure, Giddy’s 100 million deal and 25 million annual average value marks the 35th richest contract of any guard currently in the NBA. But it’s worth noting that while many NBA contracts feature built-in increases on a year-to-year basis, Josh Giddy’s deal will actually pay him a flat$25 million for each year of his contract. Meaning, as the salary cap increases, GI’s contract will account for a smaller percentage of the Bull’s total cap sheet. In fact, during the final year of his deal in 2028 to 2029, Giddy’s salary is projected to take up less than 14% of Chicago’s cap figure. All of which is to say that Josh Giddy’s new deal shouldn’t prevent Chicago from constructing a competitive team. Which means, at least for now, Giddy is someone this organization can build around. Which then brings Chicago to the next existential question they face, and that is what should a team built around Josh Giddy actually look like? Well, first off, head coach Billy Donovan has openly stated that he wants this team to continue playing fast, running up and down the floor while capitalizing on their bombs away from deep mentality. But for context, that offensive evolution actually started for Chicago, even before they traded Zack Lavine and even before they effectively handed the offensive keys to Josh Giddy. In fact, the Bulls actually averaged more possessions per 48 minutes before the Zack Lavine trade than after. Though I think the actual difference is compared to Lavine, Giddy was just a much better high usage fit in this kind of offensive system which takes advantage of opponents to push the pedal to the metal. Looking at it after the Zack Lavine trade, Giddy led Chicago in terms of touches per game, time of possession, and passes made per game while trailing only Kobe White in terms of usage among the entire Bulls roster. And Giddy accomplished those while averaging 20 and 1 half points, 9 and 1 half rebounds, 8.3 assists, and 1.4 and four steals in 33 minutes per game on efficient 50, 46, and 80% shooting splits. All while also shooting a higher volume of three-pointers and also while increasing his assist rate after becoming the Bull starting point guard. And overall, since the Zack Lavine trade, the Chicago Bulls scored 117.8 points per 100 possessions with Josh Giddy on the floor, a mark which in 2025 would have been the fifth best offensive rating in the NBA over the course of the full season. So, with all that said, my main takeaway here is that the Chicago Bulls didn’t necessarily play faster after Giddy took control of the offense. It was just that they played fast more effectively with him on the floor. Well, time will tell how long Giddy’s outside shooting tear towards the latter half of the season would have to last before defenses fully respect his three-point shot. For context, since February 1st, Giddy has drained a hyperefficient 45% of his three-pointers on four and a half attempts per game. And obviously at some point that number will have to go back down to average. But the hope for Chicago is that in the long term Giddy should become enough of a real outside shooting threat that he could fully punish defenses in the pick and roll when they choose to duck under screens when guarding him. Nonetheless, this current version of Josh Giddy has still been a real winner, pushing Chicago’s tempo into fifth gear, relentlessly leveraging his size and rebounding to be able to dish out the craftiest and the cleanest passing looks you’ll ever see in a basketball game. It’s not a coincidence that most of Chicago’s highest usage players, which includes Nicolus, Kobe White, IO Dumu, and even Modis Bazelis, have all registered a better effective field goal percentage when they’re sharing the floor with Josh Giddy than when they’re not. Which now brings us to the bigger picture given the lack of changes to the Bulls roster over the summer. Chicago’s plan seems evident and that is continuing to surround Giddy with athletic finishers and knock down shooters while playing fast and hunting every opportunity to attack in transition and thus stay away from the half court wherein the team’s lack of consistent shot creation could be a problem. The goal for Chicago is likely to be good enough offensively. And hopefully before long, 6’9 rookie Noah Esenu, 6’5 point of attack defensive ace Isac Aoro, and 6’9 big Jaylen Smith could provide enough positional size and hustle to overcome issues that could persist when you have a 35-year-old Nikicovich as your starting center. And of course, you’re also hoping that Josh Giddy could continue building on his career-high numbers and blocks and steals last season. But for sure, if Chicago is going to be good enough offensively, even without an elite shot creator on the team, a collective approach is going to be needed. And this likely means Kobe White has to have a career best season from behind the ark. And this also probably means Kevin Herder must continue to shoot 37%ish from deep the way he did last season. But other than that, the Bulls also need Io Dumu to continue his offensive growth, while at least one of the Bulls wings in Patrick Williams, Julian Phillips, and Dalen Terry should take a leap as a contributor, too. But the most important long-term piece of them all for Chicago might actually be incoming second-year player Modus Bazel. As the team’s most probable highest ceiling player, the 6’10 Bazel should continue to look like the Bull’s best draft pick since Lorie Markin in both ends of the floor. Since being promoted to the starting lineup after the Zack Lavine trade as a rookie, Bazelaged 13 points on an efficient 58.6 true shooting percentage together with four and a half rebounds, almost two assists, and 1.1 blocks in just under 27 minutes per game. Well, Bisella’s three-point shot has been the biggest surprise of his early NBA career so far. As after just having barely made a quarter of his three-pointers in the G-League during his pre-draft season, in Chicago, Bazel has actually shot 36% from deep on 6.3 attempts per 36 minutes. Well, obviously we’re still in small sample size territory here, but the most important thing is that even as a rookie, Bazelle’s willingness to fire away from deep out of catch andoot situations has already been crucial in terms of opening up driving lanes for him where he’s able to use his ball handling craft and his 6’10 frame to generate shots around the basket. Put Bazalis in isolation against a smaller or a slower defender and he’s definitely going to be able to find his way into the paint here. Giddy pushes the ball and finds Bzelis on the corner. Watch how he gets past Luca with a simple jab before he pulls the nifty behind the back dribble, giving Bzelis all the space he needs to get all the way to the basket. Then right here, Kevin Hurder finds Bzelis on the wing. He immediately takes advantage of the close out by the Rosen with another behind the back dribble before slightly putting his shoulder down, which enables him to bulldoze his way into the tough finish at the rim. Though Bazelle’s ceiling is probably higher on the defensive end of the floor with his size, length, and above average feel, coach Billy Donovan has already been utilizing Modus in a variety of different ways on defense. Most of the time, his deployed as a free safety defender and helpside rim protector around the paint and has definitely showed his impact even as a rookie as last season only Jonathan Isaac has registered the higher shot blocking rate among all forwards in the NBA than Bazel. But what I really like is how Modus has also already been utilized to guard the opposing team’s best or second best players, even in the perimeter, which is when he’s able to show his ability to slide his feet well and eventually force difficult shots over his long arms. Here you can see Bazelle is guarding Kevin Durant on the wing. Watch him fight through the screen on the way to making the effective close out on KD. Another screen comes, but again, Modus fights through it while using his feet and size all along to force Durant into a tough mid-range look. Well, the Bulls might not have a clear franchise centerpiece at this point, but in Josh Giddy and Modis Bazelis, the franchise already have two young plus-sized and highly skilled cornerstones who are both locked up for the next three to four seasons. The cost of investing in those two are going to be important, but so is whatever happens to Kobe White, who’s still the team’s best onball shot creator at this point, as White is going to be entering unrestricted free agency next summer and is definitely going to be demanding much more than his current 12 million per year average salary. Well, looking at it in a scenario where in the Chicago Bulls decide that Kobe White and Josh Giddy are indeed their back court of the future and when indeed they both will be paid around 25 to 35 million each per year over the next five seasons. The question is how are the Bulls going to afford building a 10-man deep roster made up of very good players? As Arurus Caris notably said, he believes that even without an elite superstar talent, you could build a contending team around 9 to 10 very good players. We don’t exactly know how the front office plans to answer that question, but if any, the Bulls won’t have to worry about having too much baggage in the near future. Nicolola Vousvich and Zack Collins contracts worth a combined 40 million will expire by the end of the season. Plus, the Bulls also own all of their future draft picks at this point, which is really good in case the team decides to embrace a full-on tank. But obviously, tanking isn’t the plan right now, as the Bulls still have a number of mid-career veterans who can help this team win. Nonetheless, this current Chicago Bulls team is not the same as the stale, aging, and overly expensive group we’re used to seeing in the past couple seasons. Time will tell how much patience the front office will have in terms of evaluating the players on today’s team, but without a doubt, this current Bulls roster is fun and new, while infusing optimism into a fan base that hasn’t really felt any sort of real winning over the good part of the last decade. [Music] But are the Chicago Bulls actually capable of shocking the entire NBA this season? Feel free to drop your thoughts in the comments section below. And again, if you’re new to the channel, please consider subscribing as well. Again, this has been Real Balls, and I’ll see you in the next one. Peace.

#NBA #ChicagoBulls #JoshGiddey #MatasBuzelis #NBAhighlights #basketball

The Chicago Bulls are evolving into one of the most promising teams in the NBA. The Bulls franchise now has strong cornerstones in Josh Giddey and Matas Buzelis that can be built around for a championship down the line. After being a mediocre playoff team during the Zach Lavine and DeMar DeRozan era, this Chicago team now strives to win and build a contending team one way or another. The drastic increase in the statistics are a testament to how the Bulls are now developing a new identity on the floor, one that wears opposing teams down and one which also fits the pace of the modern NBA much better. The Bulls have questions to address in terms of their roster construction, but for now, the organization has definitely answered the biggest question of their offseason by agreeing to sign Josh Giddey to a 4-year extension worth 100 million, which is a deal that can be defined as polarizing among Bulls fans and even NBA fans in general.

But the most important long term piece of them all for Chicago might actually be incoming second year player Matas Buzelis. As the team’s most probable highest ceiling player, the 6 foot 10 Buzelis should continue to look like the Bulls best draft pick since Lauri Markkanen on both ends of the floor. Since being promoted to the starting lineup after the Zach Lavine trade, as a rookie, Buzelis averaged solid numbers. He should compliment Josh Giddey, who last season, became one of only three players in the NBA to average 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists, alongside Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic. 13 points on an efficient 58.6 true shooting percentage together with 4.5 rebounds, almost 2 assists and 1.1 blocks per game in just under 27 minutes per game.

For the Bulls to thrive, Noah Essengue, Isaac Okoro, and Jalen Smith could provide enough positional size and hustle to overcome issues that could persist when you have a 35 year old Nikola Vucevic as your starting center, and of course you’re also hoping that Josh Giddey could continue building on his career-high numbers in blocks and steals last season. But for sure, if Chicago is gonna be good enough offensively even without an elite shot creator on the roster, a collective approach is gonna be needed and this likely means Coby White has to have a career-best season from behind the arc and this also probably means Kevin Huerter must continue to shoot 37 percent ish from deep the way he did last season. This video talks about why this Chicago Bulls team is different.

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