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Wisconsin Herd complete first G League draft

By Jordan Treske

OSHKOSH, WI - AUGUST 11: Wisconsin Herd president Steve Brandes (left) introduces Herd general manager Dave Dean (center) and head coach Jordan Brady (right) during a press conference at the Oshkosh Convention Center on August 11, 2017 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)
OSHKOSH, WI - AUGUST 11: Wisconsin Herd president Steve Brandes (left) introduces Herd general manager Dave Dean (center) and head coach Jordan Brady (right) during a press conference at the Oshkosh Convention Center on August 11, 2017 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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On Saturday afternoon, the Wisconsin Herd made another piece of history as they took part in their first G League Draft.

It’s another days of firsts for the Milwaukee Bucks’ G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd.

We’ve seen their projected roster take significant shape over the last week between acquiring the rights to guard Xavier Munford as well as forward Cliff Alexander, to the Bucks filling their vacant two-way contract slots with both Gary Payton II and most recently, Joel Bolomboy.

But with the start of the G League season a little less than two weeks away now, it was time for the Herd’s brain trust to participate in their first draft in the team’s history.

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Coming into the day with three picks in the first four rounds, the draft obviously gave the Herd plenty of opportunity to continue filling out their roster with the start of training camp just a couple of days away.

In the first of their three selections on the day, the Herd selected guard Ladarius White with the 43rd overall pick in the second round.

After spending four years at the University of Mississippi from 2011-2015, White has just three games of G League experience to his name at this point (two coming with the Delaware 87ers and one coming with the Maine Red Claws, all in the 2015-16 season).

The Mississippi native comes back to the league having spent last year playing for Slavia Kosice in Slovakia, where he averaged 13.1 points on 50.7 percent shooting from the field and 36.2 percent shooting from deep, along with 4.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 48 appearances.

For their second pick, the Herd took big man Zane Knowles with the 68th overall pick in the third round. The G League will be a new experience for Knowles, despite the fact he tried out for the Salt Lake City Stars before the start of last season (Knowles was waived not long after trying out for the team).

That was due to the Bahaman native splitting time with Siarka Tarnobrzeg and King Wilki Morskie Szczecin in Poland last season, where he averaged 9.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 24 total appearances.

UPDATE: According to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders, the Herd subsequently traded Knowles to the South Bay Lakers in exchange for 35-year-old shooting guard Troy DeVries.

Lastly, the Herd selected Joshua Blamon with the 95th overall pick in the fourth and final round of the draft.

The New Jersey native comes to the Herd by way of D-III school Stockton University, where he spent all four of his years in the collegiate ranks from 2011-2015. With the Ospreys, Blamon averaged 15.8 points and 5.1 rebounds per game over his career.

Just like that, the Herd finished off the day’s festivities by welcoming three new players to their inaugural roster and in time for training camp.

As we’re getting used to, these things are always subject to change and you never know whether all three players will play vital roles throughout the team’s maiden voyage or could end up experiencing short stays in Oshkosh.

Next: Milwaukee Bucks Game Preview: Oct. 21 vs Portland Trail Blazers

With the start of their season now 16 days away, we’ll have an extra dose of basketball to look forward to this year and obviously in the years to come as well.

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