What the rookies showed the Milwaukee Bucks in summer league

One of the most important factors about a team going into a rebuild is the NBA draft.

The Milwaukee Bucks decided to press the reset button on their team and trade the focal point of their franchise, Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat.

While Antetokounmpo will be walking on the soft sand of South Beach for his new team, the Bucks are in their first step of trying to get back to the top as they once were back in 2021.

As they acquired Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel'el Ware and Kasparas Jakučionis, they were also gifted multiple draft picks including three first-round picks in exchange for the former Milwaukee superstar.

One of those first-round picks included the Heat's own pick at No. 13 in the 2026 NBA Draft, and gave the Bucks two picks in the lottery.

With their first pick at No. 10 they selected Brayden Burries from Arizona. The all-around guard had a great season for the Wildcats and averaged 16.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game, on 49.1% shooting from the field and 39.1% from the 3-point line.

Leading Arizona to the Final Four, Burries rightfully entered the draft with a lot of attention and was labeled as one of the best guards in an talented draft class.

It didn't take long for Burries to live up to the hype, and impressed a lot of people during the summer league. In Las Vega, he showed out and averaged 23.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game, while shooting 50% from the field and 36.4% from beyond the arch.

All-Summer League First Team.

Just the beginning for Brayden Burries. pic.twitter.com/bL63OUaJzc
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) July 21, 2026

As a result, he earned a spot on the All-Summer League First Team, and was one of the best players during the showcase. The Bucks coaching staff took notice of what he did on the court, and were also impressed by the 20-year old.

In his 2026 NBA Eastern Conference Summer League Notebook, Keith Smith of Spotrac was told by an Bucks coaching staff office executive how much they enjoyed watching Burries thrive in summer league.

"This was really fun, because we got to the put the ball his hands a lot. He showed scoring and playmaking that you didn’t always get to see in college,” a Bucks assistant coach said. “Not sure how much that’ll happen in the season, because we’ve got a lot of other ballhandlers and creators. But seeing that he can do it is really, really exciting.”

Milwaukee got a chance to see what Burries could do as the first option, and heading into his rookie season, he's on the rise.

Mar 22, 2026; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Tennessee Volunteers forward Nate Ament (10) dribbles the ball against Virginia Cavaliers guard Malik Thomas (1) in the first half during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With their other pick, the Bucks used Miami's pick, to select Nate Ament from Tennessee. The 6-foot-10 forward was one of the key players for the Volunteers as they made it to their third consecutive Elite Eight this season.

As the team's second-leading scorer, Ament averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in his one year at Tennessee.

As did struggle with his efficiency shooting only 39.9% from the field and 33.3% from the 3-point line, his intangibles and skill set still made him an intriguing prospect.

Milwaukee selected him knowing that he was going to take time to develop and hoped to see some of that promising potential in the summer league.

Ament did exactly that and while his numbers weren't on the same level as Burries', he was efficient during his five games.

He averaged 11.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game, on 50% shooting from the field and 38.9% from the 3-point line.

The one game that Burries did not appear in during Las Vegas against the Charlotte Hornets, Ament took over and scored 23 points, six rebounds and two steals, on 53.8% shooting from the field.

Nate set the tone with 23 points tonight. pic.twitter.com/a7wY4KkT75
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) July 16, 2026

Obviously drafting Ament, the Bucks believe that the 19-year old will only get better from here, and after seeing him play in Las Vegas, the front office liked what they saw.

“Nate was really good. We didn’t ask him to change his style really at all. We wanted him to take the shots he’s comfortable with. It was nice to see him get on the glass some. He’s a guy we think will improve a lot throughout his first couple of years in the league,” a Bucks front office executive said.

Milwaukee will have to move forward without Antetokounmpo and while it's going to be an uphill battle going through a rebuild, the future looks bright for the Bucks.

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