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Everything you need to know about Milwaukee’s summer roster before games tip off in Vegas next week
Last week,
the Bucks announced their Summer League schedule, and now we know who’s going to be suiting up and playing in those games. The team released their official Vegas roster yesterday, and it features a fun mixture of current Bucks youngsters, college stars, and international talent. To get you prepped for July hoops, here’s the skinny on each summer Buck, as well as some team superlatives that highlight its most important members:
Roster Summary
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Andre Jackson Jr.
Age: 23
Years of NBA experience: 2
Position: Wing
2024–25 team: Milwaukee Bucks
Contract type: Standard
Chance of making roster: 100% lock
Even though AJax has played over 1500 minutes for the Bucks across the past two seasons, there remains some mystery to his game. We know he’s a high-flying athlete with outstanding defensive intensity, but he still has a lot of questions to answer. What role is he best suited for on an NBA floor, and can he be part of Milwaukee’s long-term plans? This summer marks the beginning of a make-or-break season for the kid from UConn.
Jamaree Bouyea
Age: 26
Years of NBA experience: 3
Position: Guard
2024–25 team: Milwaukee Bucks
Contract type: Two-way
Chance of making roster: Moderately high
With three seasons of NBA experience and 79 career G League games under his belt, Bouyea is one of the vets on this team. Ideally, he’ll be able to provide stability in what’s usually a chaotic on-court environment. Bouyea is a very capable three-level scorer and passer, making him the type of guard the Bucks are currently short on. A strong Summer League performance could make a promotion to the real 15-man roster a possibility for him.
Pete Nance
Age: 25
Years of NBA experience: 2
Position: Big
2024–25 team: Milwaukee Bucks
Contract type: Two-way
Chance of making roster: Moderately high
Nance, son of former All-Star Larry Nance, is a floor-spacing combo big who gets after it as a screener and rebounder. Along with Bouyea, he’s set to be a key piece of this summer Bucks squad. He showed some intriguing flashes for Milwaukee in 2024
–25, especially in the final game of the season, and now the team will be looking for more solidified play from him as he enters his third NBA campaign.
Tyler Smith
Age: 20
Years of NBA experience: 1
Position: Forward
2024–25 team: Milwaukee Bucks
Contract type: Standard
Chance of making roster: 100% lock
As a rookie, Tyler Smith seldom saw the floor, but Bucks fans have high expectations for him in year two. Smith has a beautiful jumper, a ton of natural talent, and probably the most upside out of anyone on this team (the next guy we’ll discuss may beg to differ, though). He’ll likely end up playing huge minutes in Vegas as Milwaukee looks to see what they have in their 20-year-old sophomore.
Bogoljub Markovic
Age: 19
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Big
2024–25 team: KK Mega Basket (Serbia)
Contract type: TBD
Chance of making roster: Uncertain
Milwaukee’s 2025 second-round pick will be playing his summer hoops under a cloud of uncertainty. The team has yet to decide whether Markovic will be stashed in Serbia next season, and his performance in Vegas is sure to have a huge impact on the choice they make. Bogi’s shooting and feel for the game are NBA-ready, but his body needs a lot of work. Keep an eye on how much he gets pushed around by opposing big men (if at all) next week.
Mark Sears
Age: 23
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Guard
2024–25 team: Alabama (NCAA)
Contract type: Two-way
Chance of making roster: High
The only rookie the Bucks currently have under a real NBA contract is Mark Sears, who they signed to a two-way deal right after the draft last Thursday. As a five-year college player who was one of the best guards in the country at Alabama, Sears should be more suited to run a professional offense than most first-year guys at his position, which puts him in an interesting spot. The Bucks currently have only one true ball-handling guard on their 15-man roster, Kevin Porter Jr. If Sears proves he’s up to the challenge, they could call for his services early in the regular season.
Jack Trehearne and I covered Markovic and Sears in-depth here.
Chris Livingston
Age: 21
Years of NBA experience: 2
Position: Forward
2024–25 team: Milwaukee Bucks
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Low
Despite being waived on Wednesday, Chris Livingston will still be hanging around with the Bucks for the time being. The team hasn’t given the 2023 58th pick much of a chance to show what he can do on an NBA floor so far, but their decision to keep him around for now, even after cutting him, shows they do still hold belief in the kid’s potential. Livingston will have some high expectations in Vegas as he heads into his third professional season.
Keita Bates-Diop
Age: 29
Years of NBA experience: 6
Position: Forward
2024–25 team: Qingdao Eagles (CBA)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Moderately low
Keita Bates-Diop is an old man compared to the average Summer League participant. The Illinois native has had some solid seasons as a bench piece in the NBA, especially with the Spurs. He’s a versatile two-way contributor known for his defense and hustle. The Bucks could use more size at the three and four slots, so the opportunity for an NBA comeback could be there for him if he dominates his competition in Sin City. Realistically, he’s competing with Thanasis Antetokounmpo for a roster spot, and we know who’s winning that battle.
Malik Williams
Age: 26
Years of NBA experience: 1
Position: Big
2024–25 team: Sioux Falls Skyforce (G League)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Low
Malik Williams has had an interesting journey as a basketball player.
After college, he almost entered the trucking and teaching industries, but he ended up joining the G League and even played seven games with the Raptors two years ago. Williams is an energetic, versatile big man who can really fill up the stat sheet. Notably, he shot 39.7% from three on 4.9 attempts per game for the Skyforce last season. Milwaukee probably won’t have room for him on their regular-season roster, but this is a guy they should try to keep on the Herd.
Markquis Nowell
Age: 25
Years of NBA experience: 1
Position: Point guard
2024–25 team: Rio Grande Valley Vipers (G League)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
Nowell is best known for his insane 20-point, 19-assist performance in the 2023 NCAA tournament. He’s a fantastic floor general who can make every play in the book with the ball in his hands. Unfortunately, he’s 5’8” on a good day. That fact alone probably all but eliminates his chances of earning another big-league contract.
John Butler Jr.
Age: 22
Years of NBA experience: 1
Position: Big
2024–25 team: Wisconsin Herd (G League)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Low
Like Bogi Markovic, John Butler is way behind the curve in terms of strength. He stands at a towering 7’0” tall, but he weighs just 190 pounds. For reference, that’s about the same as the barely-six-foot Mark Sears
(editor’s note: also the same as Brew Hoop managing editor Van Fayaz, who is a good 9 inches shorter, sheesh). Still, Butler is an imposing shot blocker and a quality floor spacer as well.
David Joplin
Age: 22
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Forward
2024–25 team: Marquette (NCAA)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Low
Bucks fans should be rooting for Joplin to succeed. The Milwaukee native (and Brookfield Central HS graduate) is a competitive and skilled forward who can really get hot from behind the arc. He’s the type of forward the Bucks could use right now, and maybe he could sneak his way onto a two-way contract.
Terrence Edwards Jr.
Age: 23
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Wing
2024–25 team: Louisville (NCAA)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
Edwards is a confident bucket getter on and off the ball, and he can be a secondary playmaker too. He was the leading scorer on the 2024 James Madison team that upset Wisconsin in the first round of March Madness. He’ll need to improve his defense and add more muscle in the G League if he wants to eventually make it to the NBA level.
Wade Taylor IV
Age: 22
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Guard
2024–25 team: Texas A&M (NCAA)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
Taylor was a star at Texas A&M because he could fill up the scoring column in a jiffy. However, he struggled majorly with efficiency, shooting just 36.6% from the field for his NCAA career. Those struggles can be traced back to his height (six feet flat), and his small stature is the same reason why the odds are stacked against him to make it to the NBA.
Our very own Drew Gentile did a great job breaking down Terrence Edwards and Wade Taylor here.
Cormac Ryan
Age: 26
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Wing
2024–25 team: Oklahoma City Blue (G League)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
Cormac Ryan is a flat-out three-point sniper who makes good decisions as a passer. In the G League last season, he shot 97% from the free-throw line (65/67). There’s a universe where he’s the next AJ Green, but we probably don’t live in it.
Blaise Threatt
Age: 24
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Guard
2024–25 team: Weber State (NCAA)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
Blaise Threatt (pronounced Threet) is an unheralded high-volume scoring guard from Weber State, so he’s basically Damian Lillard’s Milwaukee Horcrux. Threatt averaged 20.0 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 4.4 APG in his final college season, but he’s nowhere near the shooter Dame is— he shot just 32.3% from deep on 2.0 attempts a game for his NCAA career.
Frankie Fidler
Age: 22
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Forward
2024–25 team: Michigan State (NCAA)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
Fidler was a 20 PPG scorer at Omaha in 2023-24, but when he transferred to Michigan State, he was much less of a difference maker. The 6’7” forward averaged 7.0 points on 39.0% shooting last season. He competes and can make timely plays, but considering he was hardly a standout player at the high major college level, it’s tough to envision him carving a spot for himself amongst the world’s best basketball players.
Jean-Jacques Boissy
Age: 25
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Guard
2024–25 team: Al Ahli Tripoli (BAL)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Low
It only takes one minute of watching his highlights and a quick scroll through his RealGM page to realize Jean-Jacques Boissy is a straight hooper. He was the 2024
–25 MVP of the Basketball Africa League (an NBA Africa project), and he also won Finals MVP and made an All-Defensive team. The Senegal native averaged 20.9 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 3.7 APG, 2.7 SPG, and shot 41.9% from three on 8.4 attempts for Al Ahli Tripoli last season. The kicker is that he’s just six feet tall, and the level of competition in the BAL (probably) doesn’t come close to that of the NBA. Either way, this guy should be a blast to watch if he gets on the court in Vegas.
Gary Chivichyan
Age: 28
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Guard
2024–25 team: Homenetmen Beirut (Lebanese Division A)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
As his nickname, the Armenian Sniper, suggests, Gary Chivichyan is a
shooter. He hit 40.8% of his 7.4 three-point attempts per game for Homenetmen Beirut last season and 40.0% during his five-year NCAA career at Idaho State and Pacific. At 28 years old, though, his NBA window is probably closed.
Robert DiSibio
Age: 24
Years of NBA experience: 0
Position: Forward
2024–25 team: Fortitudo Agrigento (Serie A2, Italy)
Contract type: Summer League/Exhibit 10
Chance of making roster: Very low
Rob DiSibio averaged 17.1 points and shot 38.9% from three during his NCAA career at Washington & Lee. He’s also spent three summers with the Bucks as a basketball operations intern, per his LinkedIn.
Summer Squad Superlatives
Photo by Cooper Neill/NBAE via Getty Images
Too Good for Summer League (hopefully): Andre Jackson Jr. and Chris Livingston
Milwaukee’s 2023 rookie class
should absolutely cook the competition in Vegas. After all, this is their third summer doing this, and they’ve had two full professional campaigns to work on their games. In an ideal world, AJax will be shut down by the third game of the week
or make an All-Summer-League team. If he struggles out there, red flags can start to be raised about his long-term NBA future. As for Livingston, outperforming his peers may be the key to saving his career after being waived. This is essentially a league-wide audition for him.
On the Hot Seat: Jamaree Bouyea and Pete Nance
Teams shuffle their two-way slots around all the time, and Jamaree Bouyea and Pete Nance are definitely at risk of losing their spots if they slack this summer. Younger guys will be nipping at their heels, hungry for a chance to crack the real roster. Pete Nance especially could become expendable considering Milwaukee’s current depth in the frontcourt after adding Myles Turner and resigning Bobby Portis and Jericho Sims.
Most Likely to Earn a Two-Way: Jean-Jacques Boissy and Malik Williams
Among the non-rostered, two-way eligible players on this team (so not Keita Bates-Diop), Boissy and Williams stand out from the crowd as both the best and the ones that would make the most sense for the Bucks. They need guard play badly, and there’s a chance Boissy is electric enough in this setting to make the organization believe he could be part of the answer to their problem. Williams has evolved into a real stretch big—the type of player that would always be intriguing next to Giannis in the frontcourt. David Joplin gets an honorable mention in this category. Chris Livingston doesn’t get the nod here because the Bucks probably won’t give him a new contract, but another team certainly might.
Most Important Player: Tyler Smith
All eyes should be on Tyler Smith in Vegas. As things stand, he’s the only high-upside prospect the Bucks have rostered. There are multiple avenues for him to become a legitimate long-term piece for this team, and they all start here. Seeing this guy ball out next week would be a huge sign for his development. Fans and the team alike should be rooting for Smith to come out looking confident, improved, and poised.
So, there you have it. That’s everything you need to know before watching the Bucks play their summer ball. Who are you most excited to watch? Drop your thoughts in the comments, and stay tuned for more coverage surrounding next week’s events in Vegas!
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