Milwaukee Bucks' Brayden Burries labeled as the biggest steal in the NBA Draft

The NBA Draft was the most important day for the Milwaukee Bucks this year after the decision to trade Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. Before the trade and the draft, the Bucks had the No. 10 overall pick, and there were multiple options they could go with, from actually making a selection to potentially packaging it in a trade in a way to keep the two-time MVP. 

In the end, the decision to trade Antetokounmpo was made, and as a result, one of the three first-round picks that Milwaukee received was the Heat’s No. 13 overall pick. The Bucks had more flexibility in the draft and were able to make two selections. At No. 10, they chose Brayden Burries from Arizona, and at No. 13 they chose Nate Ament. 

Milwaukee needed a direction, with Antetokounmpo gone, and Burries and Ament gave them two chances. In a draft class that was centered around the first three picks of AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer as franchise-altering picks, the Bucks may have found their own franchise player in Burries. 

An article published on NBA.com by John Schuhmann asked a 48-question survey to NBA general managers that varied from what team was going to win the NBA Finals to which player you would want taking a shot with the game on the line. 

Among the 48 questions, one asked: “Which rookie was the biggest steal at where he was selected in the Draft?” The player who received the highest percentage of the votes was Burries with 30%, followed by Allen Graves of the Toronto Raptors (No. 19 overall pick), Labaron Philon (No. 22 overall pick) and Meleek Thomas (No. 34 overall pick), all at 10%. 

Ament also received votes, and ironically, Kasparas Jakučionis received the highest percentage last year at 17% and was traded to Milwaukee in the Antetokounmpo deal. 

This isn't the first time where Burries was labeled as the biggest steal of the NBA Draft, as ESPN and its NBA Insiders, voted him as the biggest steal back in back in August

Burries has done nothing but prove that not only was he one of the biggest steals but also one of the best players from the draft. It didn’t take long for him to show flashes in summer league, especially in Las Vegas, where he averaged 23.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game while shooting 50% shooting from the field and 36.4% from the 3-point line.

Those numbers earned him a spot on the All-Summer League First Team and were already catching the eyes of many.

It was a nice first impression after he was just drafted a few weeks ago, but summer league talent isn’t always the best of the best, so what about against experienced talent and other NBA stars during the preseason?

Well, despite a few tough games for the Bucks, Burries has been one of the bright spots so far. In three games, Burries has averaged 14 points, four rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.7 steals per game but has shot 37.1% from the field and 15.4% from the 3-point line. Struggles were expected for the rookie in his first action against experienced players, but he’s been productive with his minutes as he’s tied for the team’s leading scorer with Tyler Herro and Jakučionis.

It’s only preseason, but after watching Milwaukee’s first four games, it could be a long season for the Bucks; however, if there’s one silver lining, it’s that Burries has shown that he’s capable of being the centerpiece of Milwaukee’s future.