October is here, and with it comes the real start of NBA season prep around the league. Training camp is rolling for all 30 teams, and for the Bucks, the spotlight has already fallen on two rookies who are supposed to help shape what comes next in Milwaukee: Brayden Burries and Nate Ament.
Milwaukee entered the draft with a pair of picks after landing the No. 13 overall selection from the Miami Heat in the Antetokounmpo trade. The Bucks used their original No. 10 pick on Burries out of Arizona, then came back three spots later to take Ament from Tennessee.
That draft class has already given fans a reason to lean in. Burries made noise in summer league and capped it by earning All-Summer League First Team honors after averaging 23.5 points per game in Las Vegas. The 21-year-old guard has been vocal about his goals for this season, including Rookie of the Year, All-Rookie First Team and even a playoff run, and the early signs have been encouraging.
Ament’s path has looked different, but the buzz has followed him too. He was viewed as more of a project during the draft process, yet he showed progress in summer league and has kept working through the offseason.
Got to spend some time in the gym with NBA trainer Zach Gonzalez as he was working with Milwaukee’s Nate Ament. Nate shot the absolute cover off the ball.
Bucks fans should be pumped to see Nate in the fall. @NoCeilingsNBA pic.twitter.com/GOZoqFzGpc
That kind of momentum has turned into real curiosity as camp gets going. Head coach Jenkins likes what he’s seen so far, especially away from the spotlight.
"We'll learn more come Monday, but their habits, that's the biggest thing has been great," head coach Jenkins said. "They put great work in in the training room, in the weight room and then on the court; they're attacking every opportunity they get."
Jenkins also pointed out the obvious next step: summer league success is one thing, but doing it against veteran NBA players is another. The pace is faster, the bodies are stronger and the margin for error shrinks.
"I've been really impressed from what I saw in summer league, obviously, those guys showed well, but now they're going up against guys that have played in the league for a number of years and a different level of physicality and speed and, when they get their opportunities, I think they're they're playing at a very high competitive level and they have a lot of growth opportunities as well," Jenkins said. "So, luckily when it comes to those guys, they know they're going to be held very high, to a standard on the defensive side. But they've got a ways to go, for sure."
For now, the message is simple: the Bucks like the habits, they like the competitiveness and they see room to keep building.
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