It's been an interesting offseason for the Chicago Bulls, who recently traded Lonzo Ball to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Isaac Okoro and are expected to soon sign Josh Giddey to a contract extension. Giddey is part of a new youth movement in Chicago that the team hopes will eventually push them past their play-in round purgatory of the last few years.

Recently, KC Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network spoke on one youngster he thinks is the next “face” of the Bulls, and it isn't Giddey or fellow rising guard Coby White.

“One takeaway I want to add about the draft, have you seen the Bulls' social media account? Who's been marching (the rookies) around? Matas Buzelis,” said Johnson, per Bulls on CHSN on X, formerly Twitter. “He is becoming the face of the franchise. This is no knock on Josh Giddey or Coby White who obviously are much more accomplished at the NBA level. But Matas obviously being based here and becoming very media friendly… he's been marching these guys around and participating quite a bit in the social media aspect. That's the future right there.”

Indeed, Buzelis' outsized personality has quickly made him a fan favorite with Bulls Nation. In his rookie season, he participated in events like the Rising Stars Challenge and the Slam Dunk Contest to continue to expand his profile around the league.

While their 2024-25 postseason result was the same as the prior two years with a play-in loss to the Miami Heat, the Bulls now have a much more clear direction than they have in recent campaigns, thanks in no small part to the core of Buzelis, White, and Giddey.

Those three may not be seamless basketball fits next to one another, but Bulls fans will be happy to have any semblance of youth talent after the last few years of mediocrity when being led by veterans.

The Bulls will hope to take another step forward in 2025-26.