Following reports on Saturday of roster changes, the Milwaukee Bucks officially converted Joel Bolomboy‘s two-way contract to a regular NBA deal on Sunday.
It’s been a busy 24 hours of decisions for the Milwaukee Bucks, and by Sunday afternoon, there was finally some clarity on the franchise’s current course of action.
With reports on Saturday suggesting the Bucks would choose to waive veteran guard DeAndre Liggins before his contract could fully guarantee, and also sign Wisconsin Herd standout Xavier Munford to a two-way contract that would protect him from signing elsewhere, one piece of the puzzle remained.
Joel Bolomboy and Sean Kilpatrick were already occupying Milwaukee’s two-way roster spots, meaning the team would have to either waive or convert one of the duo to create room for Munford.
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Via a statement on the team’s website on Sunday, the Bucks announced that Bolomboy’s two-way contract would be converted to make him a fully fledged member of the Bucks on a regular NBA deal, paving the way for Munford to sign his two-way deal. Liggins’ departure was confirmed earlier in the day.
"“The Milwaukee Bucks have signed guard Xavier Munford to a Two-Way contract, and have converted forward Joel Bolomboy to a standard NBA contract. Munford, who attended training camp with the Bucks, had previously spent all season with the Bucks’ G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd. Bolomboy had been on a Two-Way contract with the Bucks since Oct. 20.”"
Bolomboy has already been a regular fixture of the Bucks’ bench throughout the season, even though playing opportunities have been extremely limited for the Ukrainian big man.
With John Henson and Thon Maker representing the only centers permanently on Milwaukee’s roster prior to this news, it made sense that the Bucks chose to fortify their options at that position.
On the season to date, Bolomboy has played a total of 38 minutes with the Bucks, grabbing nine points, 10 rebounds and two steals on 50 percent shooting in that time. In nine games in the G League with the Wisconsin Herd, Bolomboy averaged 15 points and 11.2 rebounds per game, while shooting 54.3 percent from the field.
Bolomboy was drafted by the Utah Jazz with the 52nd pick of the 2016 NBA Draft, and spent most of his rookie season with their affiliate team, the Salt Lake City Stars, prior to being waived in the summer.
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The 23-year-old spent his college career at Weber State, where he was named Big Sky Player of the Year in 2016, and the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2014 and 2016 too.