Bucks Have Made Decision on Starting Point Guard for 2025-26 Season

Jan 25, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Ryan Rollins (13) shoots the ball against LA Clippers guard Kevin Porter Jr. (77) in the second half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

After waiving nine-time All-Star point guard Damian Lillard over the offseason, the Milwaukee Bucks have finally answered the long-awaited question of who will step up in his place.

After practice on Tuesday, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers revealed to The Athletic's Eric Nehm that Kevin Porter Jr. would be the team's starting point guard this season.

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"You think about [Porter] and his career, he started out as a high draft pick. He started. They put the ball in his hands. He could literally take any shot and he did, you know, and now he comes from that, from not playing at times, coming off the bench, being out of the league to now back to starting and that's a huge responsibility for him to run the team and still be aggressive," Rivers told gathered reporters.

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"That's the hardest thing to do, I think, in baseball is from the point guard to understand when and when. It's just hard and so I'm sure at times he'll be great at it and then at times he may struggle at it, but we'll support him and get him right," Rivers added.

Porter is entering his second year with the Bucks and the seventh of his NBA career. A former 30th-overall draft selection, Porter has had off-court issues throughout his career.

Porter was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the team traded him to Houston after just one season, sighting the move was in everyone's best interest "given the culture and environment we have worked to cultivate here in Cleveland."

The 6-foot-4 guard played three seasons in Houston before he was traded (and subsequently waived) to Oklahoma City after he was arrested and charged by the New York Police Department for assaulting his girlfriend.

A Fraught Time for Porter

Porter did not play the 2023-24 season, joined the Clippers in 2024-25 before being traded to Milwaukee in February. In the 30 games Porter played with the Bucks, he averaged just under 20 minutes while scoring 11.7 points, grabbing 3.9 boards and dishing out 3.7 assists per game.

Now, Porter looks to take over a backcourt that is looking to replace Lillard, who joined his former Portland Trailblazers after being waived in the offseason.

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