Tough love is nothing new for Matas Buzelis.
Not in the shadows he grew up in.
His grandfather, Petras Buzelis, was a six-time Lithuanian champion for Zalgiris Kaunas in the mid-1950s and 60s, while his mother and father were both professional players in their home country.
Their focus when they were raising Matas? Make him become comfortable being uncomfortable in as many competitive situations as possible.
The same lessons being taught in the school of hard knocks by Prof. Billy Donovan.
Maybe that’s why Buzelis seems to have a perfect understanding of the tough love that came from the Bulls coach at the start of his rookie campaign. Minutes weren’t going to be handed out by Donovan, they were earned. And mistakes weren’t met with a pat on the back and more minutes given. The reward was a trip right back to the bench.
“Whatever coach (you have), you gotta come in and earn their trust,” Buzelis said. “That’s what Billy was doing. He was always on me and I thank him for that.
“Every one of my coaches that I’ve had has been very difficult on me, very tough. That’s what’s made me into the player that I am, molded me into the player I am. Now that I’ve earned some trust there’s more leeway, but he’s always on point with me. I feel like I can always be better and he feels like I can be better, and that’s the specialty of him being a coach and being one of the greatest coaches ever.”
That “leeway” is netting results.
Since Buzelis’ minutes have been increased the last six games, there have been few first-year players in the class better.
Plain and simple the No. 11 overall pick has been unleashed.
Not only has Buzelis averaged 15 points a game on 62.3% shooting from the field (45.8% from three), but also 4.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. Only San Antonio’s Stephon Castle and Atlanta’s Zaccharie Risacher have scored at a higher rate, but not as efficiently as Buzelis.
While it might be too little, too late for Buzelis to earn NBA All-Rookie honors by the end of the year – he’s 23rd overall in scoring for the rookie class – it doesn’t mean that the Bulls won’t feel much better about their situation moving forward.
Whether it’s his guard-like ball-handling skills at 6-foot-10, the violence in which he attacks the rim, or his improving defensive presence, Buzelis has shown a skillset that few in fellow rookies have displayed this season.
That’s why Donovan is now letting him play through mistakes rather than punishing him for it, because he’s earned the benefit of the doubt by correcting errors quickly and understanding urgency.
“I was put into difficult situations when I was growing up, so it’s nothing to me,” Buzelis said. “My mother always emphasized putting me in difficult situations from the start and now I think I’ve grown into a player that doesn’t fear anything and is ready for whatever.”
That doesn’t mean lessons aren’t being learned nightly, including a very important one against the Warriors in which Buzelis watched Steph Curry and Golden State come back from 24 points down in the third to blow the Bulls out on Saturday night.
“I mean this is my first year playing in the NBA, so seeing that first-hand from Steph, I mean it’s unreal what he does, but we can be better,” Buzelis said of Curry’s 24-point third quarter. “We did a great job on him in the first half, and then you know this is a team that’s won multiple championships, so they know how to play. They’re not just going to give in.
“There’s definitely lessons to be learned from me, and we can be better in coming out with more energy in the second half.”