2024 NBA Draft profile: G League Ignite forward Matas Buzelis

The 2024 NBA Draft Lottery is almost upon us and the Portland Trail Blazers emerged with the Nos. 7 and 14 picks in the first round. While the lottery slip-up is disappointing on the surface, the class of 2024 offers a similar quality of prospects in the first 10 picks. Essentially, the Blazers have a legitimate chance at getting the same caliber player at a cheaper price after landing at No. 7 in the lottery.

This class allowed a wide range of prospects to hear their name called before it was Portland's turn. Conversely, any player not named Alex Sarr could easily slip to No. 7 on draft night.

We continue our 2024 NBA Draft Profiles series with G League Ignite forward Matas Buzelis.

Matas Buzelis

• Height: 6'10″
• WT: 197
• Span: 6'10″
• Shooting hand: Right
• Position: F
• Age: 19
• Expected design area: 4-14

Statistics 2023-24*

*Statistics from G League regular season (26 games).

• PTS: 14.3 | Per 36: 16.2
• REB: 6.9 | Per 36: 7.8
• BRANCH: 2.0 | Per 36: 2.2
• FG%: 44.8
• 3P%: 27.3
• FT%: 67.9

Strengthen

Buzelis is a fluid athlete with a versatile offensive foundation. Thanks to his fluid shooting mechanics and high shot, Buzelis can outplay defenders. When working inside the arc, he has shown that he can easily put the ball on the ground. Buzelis routinely attacked sloppy closeouts and poor rotations last season. Buzeli’s skills shone in transition. Whenever the opportunity arose, he glided across the open hall to achieve great results.

Moving forward, Buzelis has the tools to develop into a player capable of playing and defending multiple positions. For a player his size, he is a fluid athlete who will attract attention as his efficiency improves.

weaknesses

Despite his strong mechanics, Buzelis was inefficient in several areas last season. He shot less than 30 percent from distance and acted primarily as a stationary three-point threat. Due to his lack of mass, Buzelis struggled with contact and the physicality of defenders. Buzelis rarely got to his spots with ease and failed to create space against good defenders. From a body mechanics perspective, he appears to be in the early stages of understanding leverage. Buzelis is constantly pushed out of his place by opponents.

Buzelis is an undisciplined ball handler at the moment, resulting in limited drives and turnovers. He is predictable in his drives and has a tendency to lose the ball in traffic. As a host, Buzelis' assist-to-turnover ratio was upside down last season. Ultimately, Buzelis's grist diet needs a complete overhaul. He too often settled for mediocre attempts with little reward last season.

Overall assessment

Buzelis is an interesting project candidate with a wide range of offensive skills. At this point, most of Buzelis' strengths are purely theoretical. He is expected to be a three-level scorer with positional versatility. However, during his time in the G League, he was inefficient on offense and was regularly outplayed by physically strong opponents. Buzelis is a willing passer, but he needs to improve his handling and passing before he can take on even a modest facilitator role.

Overall fit

If Buzelis reaches his full potential, he fulfills several key points for the Blazers going forward. He could function as a floor spacer, a secondary facilitator and a versatile frontcourt presence. At the other end of the spectrum, Buzelis' floor is incredibly low. Buzelis does not have an efficient attacking move to rely on in half court sets. Based on his current size and body mechanics, it could be several years before he can impose his will on his opponents.

If the Blazers are willing to invest in a multi-year development curve, Buzelis makes sense. However, there are likely to be other options with high upside and higher floors when Portland makes its first selection on draft night.