Not bad for an old guy.
On a night in which Matas Buzelis let the league know that he might be a headache for years to come, it was soon-to-be 35-year-old Nikola Vucevic that reminded everyone he’s never left.
Thanks to 28 points, including eight down the stretch, the Bulls (1-0) let Vucevic carry them to a 115-111 win on their regular-season opening night at the United Center.
“I felt really good,” Vucevic said about his showing. “Preseason was just a way for me to get my body going. I know my body really well, and my teammates got me going inside and outside.”
No worries because Buzelis took care of everything above the rim.
That included a highlight-reel dunk with 9:26 left in the game in which Buzelis cut, caught the Isaac Okoro pass and went right at Detroit big Isaiah Stewart, who already had three blocks on the night. It was a play that brought the home crowd to their feet, but also a reminder of the building hype that’s been around Buzelis all offseason.
The second-year forward had another nasty slam minutes later, on his way to 21 points and six rebounds.
“It’s extremely important because this is going to build the foundation of how we’re going to play the rest of the season,” Buzelis said of the impressive start of the season for his team.
When discussing his own goals, he was asked about emerging as one of the go-to guys when need be.
“I think I can be a go-to guy but at the end of the day it comes down to whatever the team needs me to do to win games,” he said. “The NBA now is positionless, so whoever has a heater, whoever has it going, that’s who we’re going to go to. If it’s my night, it’s my night. If it’s not, I’m going to have to do the dirty work, defend as hard as possible, do the little things to impact the game.”
It was Buzelis’ night, but he had to share those duties.
“Vooch does an unbelievable job professionally taking care of himself,” coach Billy Donovan said of his big man. “When he plays on both ends of the floor like he did it just really helps our team.”
Not that the Bulls made it easy on themselves.
After controlling the game through the first three quarters, they completely let go of the rope in allowing the Pistons to get off the dirt, get back to their feet and dust off with a 26-11 run in the fourth.
That’s when Vucevic said enough is enough.
The Pistons pulled to within six with just over five minutes left? No problem, a Vucevic 11-foot jumper. Cade Cunningham hits the three seconds later. Don’t worry, a 12-footer from Vucevic.
A very common them in crunch time.
Even when Detroit came all the way back and tied the game with just under three minutes left, it was Vucevic hitting clutch shot after clutch shot, thanks in large part to his signature one-handed push shot near the rim.
“He loves playing,” Donovan continued of Vucevic. “He’s really smart, he’s really skilled and he knows how to play.”
Donovan couldn’t have asked for a better opening 12 minutes, as it really was a study in styles making the fight.
Detroit came in with expectations and a brand of basketball that focuses on ground and pound, while the Bulls were about finesse with a good amount of bob and weave.
Round 1 went to the home team thanks to 12 points from Vucevic, as the Bulls outscored Detroit 35-19 in the first quarter, shooting 12-of-25 from the field and handing out 10 assists along the way.
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Chicago Sun-Times Chicago Bulls reporter