Tennessee freshman wing Nate Ament was selected with the No. 13 overall pick by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2026 NBA Draft on Tuesday night in Brooklyn. Ament’s selection makes him the highest Tennessee Volunteer taken in the draft since Marcus Haislip also went to the Milwaukee Bucks with the 13th pick of the 2002 draft.
Ament now joins a Milwaukee Bucks team that has been heavily featured in Tuesday’s news cycle after the franchise traded away superstar and NBA Champion Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat in a blockbuster move. In return, Milwaukee received Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis, and several draft picks including three first-rounders. It’s a new era in Milwaukee, and the Bucks decided to make Ament a part of it.
Ament’s selection was announced to the Miami Heat, but was part of the Giannis trade on Monday night. The Bucks also selected Arizona guard Brayden Burries with the 11th pick in the draft.
Ament is the first of three projected Volunteers off the board in the 2026 NBA Draft. Tennessee senior guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie and senior forward Felix Okpara are also projected to go this week, but have exclusively been mocked as second-round picks on Wednesday night.
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During his freshman season at Tennessee, Ament averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 35 games. He proved to be a solid player early in the season, but lacked some star moments. That was until SEC play, at least.
Starting with a blowout loss to Florida in early January, Ament’s offensive game began to solidify. That game, which took place on Jan. 10, was the start of a double-digit scoring streak that lasted through the SEC Tournament – aside from a late February game against Alabama, in which he only scored two points in 11 minutes after going down with a knee/ankle injury. As the SEC season progressed, Ament began to hunt his shot on the court. He was more assertive, more commanding, and more aggressive with his takes, whether it be from the perimeter or working to get to the foul line.
During a streak from Jan. 24 to Feb. 18, Ament went for 20+ points in six out of eight games, including 29 at Alabama, 28 against Ole Miss, 29 at Kentucky, and 29 against Oklahoma. And while he only scored 13 points on 3-of-13 shooting in the next game against Vanderbilt on Feb. 21, Ament had one of Tennessee’s most clutch late-game shots of the season to put the Vols over the top of their rivals in Nashville.
Ament has been one of the more polarizing players in the draft class. Some analysts have been critical of his inefficiency at Tennessee and his lack of speed and explosion. On the other hand, though, he’s been praised for his size, fluidity, and perimeter shooting. He also fits a coveted player type that teams search for in the name of potential growth.
Ament is the 11th Tennessee player drafted during the Rick Barnes era on Rocky Top. He’s also the first Tennessee player to end up with Milwaukee out of the draft since Marcus Haislip in 2002.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more NBA Draft coverage this week.
