BIRTHDAY: October 24, 1990 (age 30)
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6’11”, 260 lb
HOMETOWN: Morges, Switzerland
CAREER THUS FAR: With Thursday’s trade deadline deal with Orlando, the Bulls have picked up one of the top big men in the NBA, a two-time All-Star (including an All-Star nod this very season) and accomplished scorer who projects to make an immediate impact for the team on the court.
The Montenegrin veteran established himself as a star over the course of nine highly productive seasons with the Magic after spending his rookie year in Philadelphia. Vucevic comes in with averages of 24.5 points and 11.8 rebounds this season and career averages of 16.7 points and 10.3 rebounds, a consistent double-double threat throughout his entire career. He’s a deadly shooter from long range, shooting over 40% from downtown on the season, putting him as the third most accurate 3pt shooter on this Bulls team, behind Zach LaVine and Tomas Satoransky. That doesn’t mean he’s afraid of the dirty work, though – Vucevic is elite on the boards, currently the 4th leading rebounder in the entire NBA.
He’s performed well on the big stage as well, leading the Magic to playoff appearances in their past two seasons. In last season’s first round playoff loss against Milwaukee, Vucevic stepped his game up and averaged 28 points and 11 rebounds over five games, going right at the NBA’s best regular season defense and giving his team a fighting chance throughout.
FUN FACT: The Bulls’ new star comes from basketball stock, with both his father and mother playing professional basketball and making appearances for the Yugoslavian national teams. A true man of the world, Vucevic was born in Switzerland due to his father playing for a Swiss club at the time, is fluent in French, Serbian and English, and holds dual citizenship with both Montenegro and Belgium.