Brayden Burries shakes off a 1-for-7 first half in his first Bucks start and scores 17 after the break against the Bulls

MILWAUKEE — Oct. 14, 2026 — Brayden Burries heard his name called with the Milwaukee Bucks’ starters for the first time on Wednesday night. The first half did not go his way. The No. 10 pick missed six of his first seven shots against a Chicago Bulls lineup built around its regulars. He was much better after halftime and finished with 19 points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals in 29 minutes of a 125-104 preseason loss at Fiserv Forum.

Burries went 5-of-12 from the field, 1-of-6 from three and 8-of-8 at the free-throw line. Seventeen of his 19 points came after halftime, and every one of his free throws came in the second half. He had three turnovers and finished minus-15.

Milwaukee held out most of its rotation, including Tyler Herro, Myles Turner, Kyle Kuzma, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Ryan Rollins and Kevin Porter Jr. Chicago started Josh Giddey, Norman Powell, Matas Buzelis, Caleb Wilson and Jalen Smith. Burries started next to Kasparas Jakučionis, Pete Nance, Ousmane Dieng and Jericho Sims.

‘A first for everything’

Asked about being introduced as a starter, Burries said the moment reminded him of college.

“Definitely a first for everything,” he said. “Just thankful, blessed. I was given a great opportunity. I just wanted to go out there and make the best of that opportunity. But it took me back to, like, Arizona a little bit with the starting five.”

His first basket came late in the first quarter, a driving floater with 1:04 left. Before that he had kept the offense moving, assisting on a Cormac Ryan three, a Dieng jumper and a Sims layup in less than a minute and a half. The shots picked up in the third quarter. He hit a 22-foot three off a Nance pass, made six free throws, and jumped a Tre Jones pass for a steal that he finished with a running dunk. That was 11 points in the quarter. Early in the fourth he picked off Buddy Hield and scored again.

Caleb Wilson on the other side

Across the floor was Caleb Wilson, the No. 4 pick in June’s draft, six spots ahead of Burries. Burries said the two spent the pre-draft process together.

“We actually did pre-draft together,” he said. “So it’s the end of April, all the way till June. It was with each other pretty much every day, Monday through Friday, workouts, playing against each other, working out with each one another. But yeah, he’s a good player.”

He was less interested in where the rest of his class was picked. “I know everybody else drafted ahead of me, but I just focus on me, main focus,” Burries said. “Focusing on other people, other things, that’s just wasted energy. So I just focus on me, focus on how I can get better each and every day. And then over time, I’ll be right where I’m going to be.”

Wilson finished with 10 points, four rebounds and three assists for the Bulls.

The shots that aren’t falling

The 6-foot-4 guard has been aggressive all preseason without many shots going in. He scored seven points on 3-of-10 shooting off the bench in the opener against Minnesota and 16 on 5-of-13 at Oklahoma City. He was 0-of-4 from three in that game.

“Most of the shots, taking good shots, just missing, not going my way right now. And that happens,” Burries said. “So best thing, just get back in the gym, continue to shoot, and they’ll go in. The main thing is just continue to have confidence, though. That’s a big thing with me, just have confidence. So when you open, shoot it.”

Bucks coach Taylor Jenkins said the rookie had played with poise even when he got “sped up a little bit” and took a couple of tough shots. “He’s an aggressive, you know, player. He’s a guy that can get downhill for us,” Jenkins said. “He can score at multiple levels, get to the free throw line, knock down threes. His rhythm will come, but the fact that he’s not trying to skirt away from anything, he’s trying to be in attack mode.”

Jenkins added that it was good learning for Burries to go against the Bulls’ regulars. “They’ve got great size and athleticism,” the coach said. “It’s great that he’s kind of pushing against that wall right now.”

Burries described his own approach in simple terms: “Just having a short-term memory. So whether you make a turnover, bad pass, or miss a shot, like just next play mentality, how can you impact the winning on the next play?”

Why it matters

Burries was the 10th pick out of Arizona, where he played one season, and he is only the second Wildcat the Bucks have ever drafted. Milwaukee is starting over after trading Giannis Antetokounmpo to Miami, and the minutes in its backcourt are open. Burries showed on Wednesday that he can get to the line and make plays with the ball even when his jumper is off. Milwaukee closes the preseason at Indiana on Friday, and Jenkins said the home opener at Fiserv Forum is the following Friday.