Having come to the Milwaukee Bucks via free agency, let’s dive into the journey of veteran forward Bobby Portis and look at what he’ll bring to the Bucks.
The Milwaukee Bucks were certainly busy this offseason as they looked to make over their roster in light of their fall in last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Miami Heat.
In the middle of their many moves and free agent deals came the arrival of veteran forward Bobby Portis, whom the Bucks signed to a two-year, $7.4 million deal that contains a player option in the second and final year of the contract.
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Having already logged three stops over his five years in the NBA, Portis comes to Milwaukee in search of stability and a role on a team that holds championship aspirations like the Bucks have had in the last couple of seasons.
Playing in a winning environment hasn’t been something that Portis has had since his days at the University of Arkansas and before he came into the NBA and he’ll have to get acquainted with his new teammates and the coaching staff in short order.
With that, let’s learn more about new Bucks forward Bobby Portis and the journey he’s taken that now leads him to Milwaukee.
Looking at Bobby Portis’ humble beginnings and his time at the University of Arkansas
Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, Portis had his eyes set on becoming a Razorback long before he reached college.
As he looked to achieve his dream, Portis and his family had to fight through plenty of adversity, whether it was poverty, domestic violence and just general instability. The oldest of four children, Portis occasionally carried the weight of the personal turmoil going on around him on to the basketball court.
The emotion and hunger that Portis fostered within fueled his game and his mentor, 12-year NBA veteran and Rozorback legend, Corliss Williamson, was instrumental in nurturing Portis’ abilities and fieriness as he remarked to the Chicago Tribune in June of 2015:
"“I remember times when he was younger, I could be talking to him after practice in a normal voice and he would break down and cry,” Williamson said. “Watching him being able to bring those emotions in and channel them the right way, that’s something I’m really impressed with as he grew and matured. “He was kind of quiet when I first met him. But he had that fiery competitive nature on the court. He was really raw but you could tell with some work and some time and some love, he could become a pretty good player.”"
Having only taken one college visit, Portis moved on to the University of Arkansas where his star only grew further coming out of Hall High School. Portis wound up on the SEC All-freshman team and earned a second team All-SEC selection after averaging 12.3 points on .509/.273/.737 shooting splits, along with 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.5 blocks in 34 appearances.
It was Portis’ sophomore season, though, that provided him the launching pad needed to enter the NBA. In a year in which he averaged 17.5 points on .541/.467/.737 shooting splits, 8.9 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, 1.2 assists and 1.1 steals, Portis became an All-American, earned a first team All-SEC selection and was named the SEC Player of the Year.
From there, Portis would soon realize his NBA dreams by declaring for the 2015 NBA Draft.