Milwaukee Bucks: 3 things to expect from new guard Elijah Bryant

Elijah Bryant comes to the Milwaukee Bucks as an improved defender

For the scoring prowess and shooting skills he brings to the table, how Bryant will fare on the defensive end will go a long way in determining how successful his time in Milwaukee will be.

The good news on that front is that Bryant has made significant strides as a defender, especially since joining Maccabi Tel Aviv ahead of the 2019-20 season. Bryant brings great positional size by standing at 6’5″ and 6’9″ wingspan and great foot speed and it was clear that he had the tools to succeed within a defensive-minded team like Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Take these comments made by Maccabi Tel Aviv head coach Ioannis Sfairopoulos in October of 2019 to Joshua Halickman of the Sports Rabbi when assessing Bryant’s defensive abilities after a big EuroLeague win over Fenerbahce:

"“If you see the plus/minus ranking Elijah had a +18 which was the best on the team,” Sfairpoulos excitedly told me following the game. “I think he has a big future ahead. He is getting Euroleague experience now after we watched him last year. His defense is unbelievable. Last year he was mainly scoring and this year he adjusted to our style and philosophy which is to play good defense first and then score. I think every week and month that goes by he will get better and better.”"

With that said, Bryant’s advanced defensive numbers paint a different picture year over year. Bryant posted a 2.8 steal percentage in 2019-20 that tumbled down to 1.9 steal percentage this season. However, much of that can be explained to the struggles that Maccabi Tel Aviv has gone through this year.

While it may be some time before we see Bryant earn any sort of playing time with the Bucks, it’s clear that they have valued Bryant and his development overseas for some time now. We’ll just have to see whether he gets the opportunity to blossom even further next season.