Welcome to Volume II of our “Choose Your Own Adventure” starter series, where we explore the Milwaukee Bucks’ options at each position. Read along, make your choice, and share your pick in the comments—if you dare!
This season, the Bucks will start their best shooting guard in a decade.
Marinate on that.
For a franchise coming out of arguably its best-ever era, this is no small feat.
A decade ago, the Bucks hadn’t won a second title. John Hammond was GM. Jason Kidd was head coach. Jabari Parker averaged
20 a game. So did Giannis—for the first time in his career.
Over the last ten years, in reverse-chronological order, the Bucks’ primary starters at the two have been AJ Green, Andre Jackson Jr., Malik Beasley, Grayson Allen, Donte DiVincenzo, Wes Matthews, Malcolm Brogdon, and Tony Snell. Brogdon and DiVincenzo aside—and there are even arguments there—the archetype has been clear: 3-and-D, low usage spacer. Considering the staples in the other starting slots, this was logical. Of course, in reality, it’s more often than not been 3-or-D, especially over the last five years. And, honestly, the Bucks haven’t had a whole lot of options.
Now, Milwaukee has an abundance of choice. Need a 20-plus per Boy Wonder, who can create off the dribble and hit from the logo? They’ve got that. Rather unleash a blue-chip rookie with the potential to become a guy? Got that too. What about rolling with a secondary playmaker, circumventing traditional wisdom for an overpaid vet, or reverting back to the status quo with someone who can snipe from the farm and sky? Check, check, check.
But with so many options, who should it be?
Disclaimer: Ryan Rollins isn’t listed below. Perhaps he should be, he can certainly play the position. But it’s a safe enough bet that he’ll be starting at the point—at least as far as I see it.
Start your adventure, go on to OPTION 1.
1. The whodidit: Tyler Herro
The logic for starting Tyler Herro is simple: he’s instantly the best two-guard the Bucks have had since Michael Redd and the best option the Bucks currently have as a go-to offensive option. A flat-out scorer, Herro can and does hit from everywhere on the court—70% from 0-3 feet, 56% from 3-10, 52% from 10-16, 42% from 16-3P, and 38% from three (per Basketball-Reference)—leading to an elite true shooting percentage of 60%. But he’s more than just a shooter. Herro is also a legitimate shot creator for others, especially in a secondary playmaking role (career 21% assist percentage), and turns it over less frequently (10.2% turnover percentage) than all of the other ball handling guards on the roster—and even AJ “I don’t dribble” Green.
Stats aside, Herro is the most proven commodity the Bucks have at the two and you just know he wants a revenge tour after being the subject of trade rumours for what feels like the entirety of his career. Fostering that, inflating his output leaning on his winning tradition and monetising celebrating his homecoming, might be the best long-term play for the Bucks too.
If you need someone to talk to (especially online), choose Herro. If not, turn to OPTION 2.
2. The blue-chipper: Brayden Burries
I’m not one to spit hyperbole—or overreact to summer league—but if you’ve seen Brayden Burries in action with a Bucks jersey on it’s hard not to fall in love with his game. Dude just has it. On or off ball, Burries is a straight killer—a wrecking ball on the way to the cup and a marksman from deep.
“Buzzer-Beater Burries” already showed he’s not afraid of the moment. And with offence so sweet you can see him morph into Book and defence so mean you might confuse him with Jrue, he’s the perfect guy to build around moving forward. He just needs the time—and a starting gig. In fact, Burries has so much potential that he should only ever be written about in future tense.
If you’ve got a ladder to get to his floor, choose Burries. If not, go to OPTION 3.
3. The secondary playmaker: Kevin Porter Jr.
Talk about a whirlwind. After being traded for MarJon Beauchamp before the trade deadline in 2025, Porter has gone from backup to starter to injured on opening night to playing out of his mind to injured again to balling out (but forgetting how to shoot) to being shut down for good to the operating theatre. Caught your breath?
Now, with the Bucks reloaded in the backcourt, Porter finds himself on the outer once again. In fact, despite being arguably the team’s best player last year, his decision to pick up his player option was a curious one, with the general feeling of (a) surprise, thinking he could have gotten something more lucrative (salary or duration) elsewhere, or (b) disenchantment, thinking we’ve had that experience and it’s time to move on.
Anyway, I digress. Porter is a Buck and he’s still one of the most talented players on the roster (if not the most). And while not the shooter you’d like to see at the two, he’s perhaps the best combination of scorer (17.4 PPG), playmaker (7.4 APG, 33.8% assist percentage), and defender (2.2 SPG, third in the league; 4.3 DRPG, 14.6% defensive rebounding percentage) the Bucks have at the position. Now that’s a reason to start him.
If you like your offence with a side of chaos, stick with Porter. If not, turn to OPTION 4.
4. The Klutch one: Gary Trent Jr.
This time last year, Gary Trent Jr. was the third-ranked Buck in our Ranking the Roster series. As it turns out, it was for the worse. But while we were wrong—so, so wrong—Trent isn’t the drongo he showcased last season, either. And, in case you missed it, he did just re-up with Milwaukee for four years and $64m—so at least someone in the Bucks front office thinks he’s pretty good too!
Realistically, Trent shouldn’t be the Bucks’ starting shooting guard. But he might be the purest two on the squad, at least in the traditional sense of the position. And this is his case. Herro certainly has more positional versatility, having played significant portions of his career at the point (51% of playing time in 2023-24; 38% in 2024-25) and at small forward (20% last season). Burries and Porter are far more suited to ball-dominant roles too. Trent, however, is purely an off-ball threat, recording a lower average time of possession than every Buck sans Gary Harris, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Amir Coffey, and Alex Antetokounmpo. It’s a good thing too—have you seen him try to break guys down off the dribble? At his best, Trent is also better than AJ Green and he has come up Klutch clutch in the playoffs, which is why we all ranked him so highly to begin with.
If you’ve got a firm handshake, choose Trent—just know it might come back to bite you! Otherwise, move on to OPTION 5.
5. The status quo: AJ Green
Some scares are of the jump variety—they catch you off guard (pun intended) and you can’t do anything about them. AJ Green starting at the two for the 2026-27 Milwaukee Bucks would be one of those.
But first the positives. Green is an elite shooter and floor spacer and, somehow, he always seems to find himself in the most effective Bucks lineups—Giannis, Green, Porter, Bobby Portis, and Ryan Rollins five-man lineups recorded a net rating of +30.7 last year, while Giannis, Green, Rollins, Myles Turner, and Kyle Kuzma recorded a +28.3. And before you ask, it’s not all Giannis either; Green, Porter, Portis, Rollins, and Jericho Sims lineups recorded a +20.8. It’s also important to acknowledge that, last season, Green was put in too many disadvantageous situations where he was miscast as a three.
Still, having him start at the two over Herro or Burries or even Porter would be quite the shock to the system and a terrifying sign of things going awry in Milwaukee.
QUICK! Make a decision, you’re near the end. Choose Green if you’re stuck in the past (and don’t like any of the alternatives). Otherwise, pull a rabbit out of your hat and tell us who it is in the comments.
THE END
