Milwaukee Bucks make space to add another center

A month ago, the Milwaukee Bucks decided to sign John Butler Jr. to a guaranteed training camp contract.

The 7-foot center appeared in 49 games last season for the Bucks' G-League affiliate team, the Wisconsin Herd, and averaged 9.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.7 blocks in 28.6 minutes per game.

He continued to play for the Bucks organization in summer league where he would average 3.9 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.0 block per game in eight games. On Oct. 6, Milwaukee announced in its press release that the Bucks have waived Butler to signed another center, Johni Broome.

Welcome, Johni! pic.twitter.com/d9OT4iJgPC
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) October 6, 2026

Broome was originally selected in the second round with the No. 35 overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2025 NBA Draft after an impressive college season. He spent two years at Morehead State, where he averaged 15.4 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game and racked up his fair share of accolades with the Eagles

He would transfer to Auburn where he would become a household name with the Tigers as he averaged 17.5 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game while shooting 52.6% from the field in his final two seasons.

Broome earned numerous accolades at Auburn, including being selected to the first team All-SEC twice in 2023-24 and 2024-25, was a consensus first team All-American in 2025, the Sporting News National Player of the Year, SEC Player of the Year and led Auburn to the Final Four.

His NBA career was mostly spent in the G-League with the 76ers organization where he played for the Delaware Blue Coats. Across 26 games, Broome averaged 21.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.5 blocks per game on 46.4% shooting from the field.

One of his best performances while playing for the Blue Coats came on Jan. 16 where he recorded 50 points, 17 rebounds, five assists, two blocks and one steal while shooting 18-for-34 (52.9%) and 5-for-7 (71.4%) from the 3-point line.

The 24-year-old also suited up for three games in this year's summer league, where he averaged 14.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.0 block per game on 45.2% shooting from the field, with his best performance coming against the Indiana Pacers where he finished the game with 23 points and 11 rebounds.

He excels in paint scoring using a variety of footwork and post moves to get past his defenders, and has good touch around the rim. He also has the ability to score from the mid-range and the 3-point line, while also being a good playmaker at 6-foot-10. Broome is a tremendous rebounder, an efficient interior defender and can play both the power forward and center position.

As the preseason continues and with the Milwaukee's next game on Wednesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder, it'll be interesting to see what he can bring to the table with four more games remaining.

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