The Chicago Bulls selected Matas Buzelis with the 11th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. They followed it up by taking Noa Essengue, a similar mold of player, with the 12th pick a year later. That may seem like doubling down unnecessarily, especially when the team needs a center pretty badly. One team analyst, however, believes this could be the makings of something special.
Chicago Bulls analyst likes future pairing of Noa Essengue, Matas Buzelis
Down the line, Noa Essengue and Matas Buzelis are highly likely to be key players for the Chicago Bulls. They could, in the eyes of Cam Smith, be a formidable defensive duo pretty soon. “You bring in a guy like Noa Essengue, and you think of what this Bulls team is, with the length, the versatility, the athleticism across the perimeter, and pairing him up with Matas Buzelis,” Smith said.
“You’re looking at two guys that really, as they grow into their one bodies but also their NBA careers as players, could be a formidable duo on the defensive end, but also when you think about the style of play that they’re going to play up and down and making plays at the rim,” Smith added. He said that Essengue is a player who could be a game-changer on the defensive end.
The insider also implored fans not to make the comparison between Buzelis and Essengue, because they’re two different players with different development tracks. Buzelis broke out last year and looks like a steal from the 2024 class, but Essengue may need more time to develop.
Essengue is “not as fluid or versatile” on offense as Buzelis, but Smith firmly believes that the 2025 prospect will get there “at some point.” In the meantime, he should be valuable enough on the defensive end to help shore up some shortcomings for the Bulls. The hope is that Essengue can get on the floor in year one to get meaningful minutes, something that happened and helped Buzelis develop in his rookie season.
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