Brayden Burries spent the preseason showing Milwaukee exactly why the Bucks are so high on him. He looked like the team’s best player at times, filled up the box score, and kept coming at defenders with no hesitation. The one thing that didn’t cooperate was his jumper.
That shot was the lone flaw in an otherwise eye-catching stretch. Burries hit just 8-of-32 jump shots in the preseason, a 25 percent clip, and his 3-point numbers were even rougher at 2-of-17, or 11.8 percent. Even with those struggles, he still finished second on the team in points per game, which says plenty about how productive he was everywhere else.
What stood out most was how often he made things happen at the rim. Burries shot 13-of-18, good for 72.2 percent, from less than five feet.
For a rookie still finding his way, he played with real aggression and looked comfortable driving straight into traffic. If that fearless approach stays in place and the jumper starts dropping more often, Milwaukee could have a real offensive problem in its favor.
The shooting slump also doesn’t look like something the Bucks need to panic about. Burries was a strong shooter in college, including 39.1 percent from perimeter range at Arizona. That makes this preseason stretch feel more like a temporary hiccup than a lasting concern.
His role also appears to be getting bigger. With Kevin Porter Jr. waived, Burries suddenly becomes even more important off the bench, and the Bucks will need his production to help keep things steady. That move says plenty about how much Milwaukee believes he can handle.
And based on what he just did in the preseason, it’s easy to understand why. Burries averaged 14 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.5 steals per game.
The sample was small, but the two-way ability was obvious. If the jumper catches up to the rest of his game, Milwaukee may not just have a useful rookie - it may have something much bigger.
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