If the season ended today, the Chicago Bulls would have a clear finalist for Most Improved Player. But it’s not the young player some might expect.
Matas Buzelis sat down at Media Day and declared winning the Most Improved Player Award as an individual goal for the 2025-26 season. While no one can take him out of the running a mere 13 games into the year, there is another Bulls starter who has already made a more convincing case for the hardware.
Josh Giddey has instantly outplayed the four-year, $100 million contract he signed this offseason. The guard has answered any questions about whether he could repeat what he did over the final month and a half last season. And he’s done it by averaging 21.8 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 9.4 assists a night on 47.3 percent shooting from the field.
The most important number of all, however, is the win column. Giddey has always been capable of stuffing the stat sheet, but he’s now shown how influential those numbers can be. The team is 7-4 in games he’s started, and he has been particularly useful down the stretch of close games.
Giddey is 5-2 in clutch outings this season (games that are within 5 points with 5 minutes to go). He is tied for 15th in total points scored in the clutch and ranks second in total assists. Likewise, of the players who have scored at least 22 points in such games this year, Giddey’s +7 is the 8th-highest mark. The players in front of him include: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Cade Cunningham, Victor Wembanyama, Alperen Sengun, and Steph Curry.
Of course, only four teams have played more clutch games than the Bulls this season, which is going to play a factor in this conversation. Giddey simply had more opportunities to put numbers on the board. But, hey, he has still taken solid advantage of those opportunities, which is what matters most.
Regardless, all of this has led to the oddsmakers boosting Giddey’s chances at the Most Improved Player title. FanDuel and DraftKings each currently have Giddey listed with the second-best odds to win the award. The former sportsbook has him at +430 behind the Pistons’ Jalen Duren at +175. Meanwhile, DraftKings has Duren at +135 and Giddey at +400. The next closest player on both platforms is Deni Avdija, who is a ways away at +600 on FanDuel and a +800 on DraftKings.
A lot can change over the next few months, and Giddey will slip further down the ladder if the Bulls can’t manage to stay around .500 this season. However, there is no question that what we have seen early on from the 23-year-old is impressive, and he has undoubtedly earned a spot in the early-season conversation.
We do have new user promos for both FanDuel and DraftKings here on BN, so be sure to use those if you’re looking to get in on the Chicago Bulls’ MIP action! Matas Buzelis is also still listed on both books with odds of +4000.
