The Chicago Bulls’ 2025 and 2026 trade deadlines looked very similar. One opened up opportunities for Josh Giddey; the other one should open up opportunities for Matas Buzelis.
Trade Deadline 2025: Bulls trade No. 1 option Zach LaVine at the trade deadline. Shot attempts open up. Josh Giddey steps in as the primary ball-handler. Giddey averages 21.2 points, 10.7 rebounds and 9.3 assists after the All-Star Break.
Trade Deadline 2026: Bulls trade away three 15+ point-per-game scorers in Nikola Vucevic, Ayo Dosunmu, and Coby White. Shot attempts open up.
Matas Buzelis…?
Increased Opportunity Post-Deadline
The Bulls cleaned house at the 2026 trade deadline, making the most trades out of any team. They traded away long-tenured Bulls in Vucevic, Dosunmu, and White, officially starting the new era of Chicago Bulls basketball.
Buzelis has immediately stepped up, becoming Chicago’s leading scorer since the trade deadline. During that stretch, he is averaging 30 minutes and 13 shot attempts per game, both of which are improvements from his season averages.
Josh Giddey Helpful for Matas Buzelis’ Deep Ball
The Bulls getting healthy over the All-Star Break will undeniably help Buzelis.
Chicago has played four games since the deadline. In those four games, Buzelis is shooting 42.9% from three, and in his last 15 games, he’s knocked down 42.6%. Buzelis only played with Giddey four times in the last 15 games. His three-point average in those four games? 48%.
Buzelis has developed into a 40+% three-point shooter in the back half of the season. Giddey coming back gives starting defenses someone other than Buzelis to worry about on the Bulls; the Austrailian is averaging 16.1 drives per game this season. Getting the ball into the paint collapses a defense, leading to open threes or easy cuts for Buzelis.
Other Bulls Returning Beneficial for Buzelis
Giddey isn’t the only player coming back from injury who helps Buzelis’ breakout. In particular, Jalen Smith and Isaac Okoro’s return to the lineup rounds out the front court.
The Bulls have experimented with Patrick Williams and Guerschon Yabusele, two players 6-foot-7 or under, as starting centers since Vucevic has been traded. This has forced Buzelis to work harder on defense, guarding power forwards and centers. Smith adds height to the starting lineup, and Okoro adds defense. Buzelis will use most of his energy on offense, while being an elite help defender.
Buzelis has all the prerequisites for a Giddey-like post-All-Star breakout: more opportunity, higher efficiency, a healthy team, and focusing on offense. He is already winning trophies during All-Star Weekend. Don’t be surprised when he breaks out after.
https://twitter.com/BullsMuse_/status/2022524676962963553?s=20
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