Matas Buzelis goes 11th overall to his hometown Chicago Bulls. Thank you for watching. Subscribe and follow League Him on Instagram and Twitter. #MatasBuzelis #NBADraft #LeagueHim
Chapters
Intro 00:00
Spot Ups/Attacking Closeouts 02:47
Cutting 03:40
Ball Screens/Handoffs 04:15
Defense 05:18
Matas Buzelis (born November 2, 2004) is a forward for G League Ignite. A Chicago-area native, Buzelis played his senior high school season at Sunrise Christian Academy in Kansas. He was named the 2022-23 Gatorade Kansas Boys Basketball Player of the Year after averaging 15.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks and shooting 53.7 percent from the field, including 43.1 percent from 3-point range. Buzelis led the team to a 22-8 record and the Final Four of GEICO Nationals. As a junior at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire, Buzelis was selected as the 2021-22 Gatorade New Hampshire Boys Basketball Player of the Year and won the New England Prep School Athletic Council Class AAA Tournament championship.
Matas Arvidas Buzelis (born October 13, 2004) is a Lithuanian-American professional basketball player who last played for the NBA G League Ignite of the NBA G League. He was a consensus five-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2023 class.
Early life and high school career
Buzelis grew up in Chicago, Illinois. Both of his parents played basketball professionally in Lithuania before immigrating to the United States and settling in the Chicago area.[1] In his childhood Buzelis attended gymnastics school with his brother and sister, later in the same school he attended swimming and had the best results among under–10 and under–12 breaststroke swimmers in the state of Illinois.[2]
Buzelis initially attended Hinsdale Central High School and played on their sophomore team as a freshman.[3] He transferred to Brewster Academy, a boarding school in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, midway through the start of the first semester of his sophomore year after Hinsdale Central's basketball season was postponed due to concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4] As a junior, Buzelis was named the New Hampshire Gatorade Player of the Year after averaging 11.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 1.2 steals per game.[5] He was also selected to play for Team World in the 2022 Nike Hoops Summit.[6]
Buzelis transferred to Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas before the start of his senior year.[7] During his senior year, he averaged 15.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while shooting 54 percent from the field, 42.4 percent from 3-point range and 80 percent from the free throw line.[8]
Buzelis was selected to play in the 2023 McDonald's All-American Boys Game.[9] He also took part in the Basketball Without Borders camp during the 2023 NBA All-Star weekend and was named the camp's MVP.[10]
Recruiting
Buzelis was a consensus five-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2023 class, according to major recruiting services.[11] He ultimately chose to play professionally for NBA G League Ignite.[12][13] Buzelis had also considered playing college basketball for Kentucky, North Carolina, Florida State, and Wake Forest.[14]
