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Tuesday, January 27, 2026

Good morning, Chicago.

Matas Buzelis is headed back to the NBA All-Star weekend.

The Bulls forward was announced as one of 28 players participating in the 2026 Rising Stars challenge during NBA All-Star weekend, which will take place in Los Angeles from Feb. 13-15. This is technically Buzelis’ third time participating in the challenge after he was previously selected as an NBA rookie in 2025 and a pre-professional player with G League Ignite in 2024.

But although Buzelis was eager to participate in the Rising Stars challenge, he declined another invitation — to compete in the dunk contest.

Buzelis competed as one of four players in the 2025 dunk contest. It was an unfortunate outing — Buzelis missed every attempt on his opening dunk, finished last in the initial stage and did not advance to showcase his final dunks — a fact that Buzelis openly acknowledged.

“We know how that went,” Buzelis said with a laugh.

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