Pete Nance has been through an emotional roller coaster over the last several days, with his place on the Milwaukee Bucks fluctuating. After recently being cut, the Bucks swiftly brought him back, gifting him a fresh new two-year contract. Nance immediately vindicated them for doing so by having a solid Summer League outing against the Miami Heat.
Nance shines in Summer League debut
Most of the spotlight went to Brayden Burries, Milwaukee's star rookie, and deservedly so, but Nance also had himself quite a performance.
In 26 minutes, he chipped in 16 points, seven rebounds, and two blocked shots. Despite a quiet second half, Nance's shooting was off the charts, with the forward going 6-of-10 from the floor, which included 4-of-6 from downtown. That efficiency helped him log the second most points on the team, trailing only Brayden Burries' 18.
As one of the veterans on this Summer League squad, Nance should look the part. He did, serving as a lifeline for the younger players while doing what he does best—everything. Not only is he a great perimeter shooter, but he can rebound exceptionally well, and while he will never make All-Defense, Nance can hold up his end of the bargain, as he showed with his two blocks in this outing.
Nance has been a great leader on and off the floor for this squad full of inexperienced youngsters, and that's the type of player other teams would love to have in town.
Nance rejoins Milwaukee's crowded frontcourt
While everyone is justifiably focused on how stuffed the backcourt currently is, Milwaukee also has plenty of bodies between the power forward and center spots.
It's unclear where Nance will fit into a rotation that includes Myles Turner, Kel'el Ware, Jericho Sims, Kyle Kuzma, and Bogoljub Markovic. At the bare minimum, he will be a nice depth piece. In the NBA, you can never have too much depth, and if Pete Nance is one of your third or fourth stringers, you are in a solid place.
He's the type of player the Milwaukee Bucks should continue to seek out throughout this next era of basketball. Scouring the market for overlooked and disregarded talent and securing them on team-friendly deals is a great way to fill out this roster. Between Nance, Ryan Rollins, Cormac Ryan, and Kam Jones, among others, the Bucks have done a good job of that so far.
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