Twenty-year-old Matas Buzelis is the closest thing the Chicago Bulls have to a potential superstar, which means the organization must find the ideal way to utilize his versatile skill set. Moving him up and down the lineup into different positions is a classic way to do it, and head coach Billy Donovan finally gave that a go during an Oct. 16 preseason matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
From the outside looking in, the most intriguing and logical way to run the experiment would be to roll with a small-ball lineup that features Buzelis at center. The Bulls have a glut of wings, and starting a pair like Isaac Okoro and Patrick Williams next to Buzelis in the frontcourt would make sense. Donovan decided to go the other direction, however, moving him to small forward and inserting Jalen Smith next to Nikola Vucevic in a two-big starting lineup.
But it's a step in the right direction and presents Chicago with an interesting scheme to explore -- and one that worked wonderfully.
The Bulls are finally trying Matas Buzelis at different positions
Presumably, part of the impetus for shifting the lineup was the injuries to Coby White and Okoro, neither of whom played against Minnesota. It was an interesting call to start Smith, though, who averaged just 8.2 points and 5.6 rebounds in 15.0 minutes per game last season and fell out of the rotation near the end of the season.
Jalen Smith and Nikola Vucevic will start, per Donovan. He rarely discloses starting lineups. Said Smith hasn’t played much during preseason and “we’re gonna need him this year.” https://t.co/8DEYLAdA6o
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) October 16, 2025
As it turns out, that decision was a stroke of genius from Donovan, at least for one night.
Buzelis, Smith and Vucevic shot a combined 18-for-34 (52.9 percent) from the field. The starting five, rounded out by Josh Giddey and Tre Jones, shot 26-for-50 (52.0 percent) overall. Although that group was only 4-for-18 from 3-point range, it was 20-for-29 (68.9 percent) in the paint.
Smith scored 15 of his 35 total preseason points, adding five rebounds and three blocks. He finished with a plus-minus of +4. Vucevic, who was a team-worst -26 in the Bulls' previous game against the Denver Nuggets, went for 13 points and 10 rebounds and was a -1. Buzelis had his most thrilling night of the preseason and finished with 19 points and two blocks.
The fact that Smith and Buzelis, who led Chicago in swatted shots last season, combined for five blocks against the Timberwolves is noteworthy.
Even Giddey, who nearly posted a triple-double with 14 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, was a -12 compared to the -22 he finished with against the Nuggets.
It was a single game, and an exhibition one. There's no guarantee this kind of performance will carry over to the regular season. But the Wolves had one of the best defenses in the NBA last year, and Julius Randle, Rudy Gobert and Anthony Edwards all played at least 26 minutes in both teams' final tune-ups before things start for real.
It was a test worth administering for Donovan, and his team passed it with flying colors.