Two friends brought Jennings back to Bucks
They were all following Brandon Jennings over in China. Heck, they were pulling for the guy.
But it was Dave Dean who persistently put the bug in Jon Horst’s ear as soon as Jennings’ stint ended with Shanxi Zhongyu and the Bucks' former first-round draft pick returned to Los Angeles in December.
Should we look at Brandon Jennings? For the G League team in Oshkosh?
They discussed it in person first. Then Dean sent a text. And then another. And then again: “Jon, I think this would be a great idea for the Herd.”
This is how it works between the longtime co-workers and friends who began as staff members in the Bucks' front office and worked their way to the top, Horst as GM of the Bucks and Dean as vice president of basketball operations and GM of the team's inaugural G League team, the Wisconsin Herd.
Dean persists. Horst contemplates and then, eventually, decides.
“I tell everyone: 'Keep telling me. Keep asking me. I will never get frustrated if you keep reminding me,' ” said Horst.
That’s because the first-year NBA GM, who will turn 35 next month, has to make dozens of decisions every single day. Some are no-brainers and just need his stamp of approval. Others have to simmer for a while in his cerebrum. And in this case, Horst was incredibly doubtful Jennings would make himself available to the G League, the NBA's development league. This is a 28-year-old veteran with seemingly double the experience of half the current Bucks roster.
But on Feb. 4, Dean fired off one final text to Horst that simply said, “Hey, reminder: Brandon Jennings.” Horst read it, looked up from his always-busy phone and the swirl of activity of pregame warm-ups in Brooklyn and spotted none other than Jeff Schwartz, the agent for Jennings, around the court. Horst was ready to approach him with the wild idea: How about bringing Jennings back to Milwaukee, sort of, by signing him to the Herd in Oshkosh?
This was the time to pounce, since James Young had been called up to Philadelphia, jumping the Bucks to the top waiver spot in the G League in mid-February. Jennings could get off the couch and stay basketball-ready, and the Bucks could see what he had.
Schwartz liked the idea, and Jennings said yes within a minute.
“I didn't care that it was in the G League or not,” said Jennings. "I was just surprised that they even called, and they wanted me. I was like, this is crazy, of course I'll come!"
Five weeks later, Jennings was promoted, made his debut for Milwaukee on a 10-day contract and flirted with a triple-double in Milwaukee’s 121-103 victory against Memphis.
Horst simply congratulated Dean. “Man, great job. This was you,” he acknowledged.
In the thick of the hunt for a high playoff seeding, this late-season personnel win with Jennings was especially gratifying because Horst and Dean had a part in drafting Jennings with then-GM John Hammond in 2009. Jennings was so young then. Dean remembers watching Jennings try to install his license plate on his brand new Ford Edge before he finally had to intervene.
“He had no clue what he was doing,” said Dean. “I’m watching this kid fumble around with a screwdriver. I’m like, this kid is going to slice his hand; he’s not going to be able to play a game. I ran out there; ‘Brandon, let me do this for you.’ ”
Tracking Jennings after his fouryear tenure ended in Milwaukee in 2013, as he played for four other NBA teams and returned from a devastating torn Achilles, was a joyful part of the job for Dean and Horst. It didn’t matter his last team was in China. They knew he still had NBA talent.
“I’m totally rooting for him,” said Horst. “But I also think I’m very objective to make sure we’re doing what’s right for the organization. I hope that those things align. So far, so good.”
“I wish I could say there was this master plan,” said Dean. “When we signed Brandon initially, it truly was for Brandon to hit the ground running, and to be ready to play basketball for any team, anywhere. If something becomes available with us, then we’ll discuss it; but there was no promise beyond that.
“Brandon was 1,000% on board. Everything just came together perfectly.”
That Jennings looks ready is a partial credit to the fact the Bucks keep close ties to the Herd. Dean saw every practice and game of Jennings’. Herd coach Jordan Brady runs all of the same plays and uses the same terminology as the Bucks. He visits the team in Milwaukee and Bucks coach Joe Prunty as much as possible. Dean and Horst make frequent visits for in-person check-ins and Dean communicates with Brady at least three times a day.
“We’re teaching the exact same stuff,” said Dean.
The Herd has sold out 12 of 24 home games, enjoying dedicated fan support already. It has won 20 games when the average win total for a team in its inaugural season is 14. But it's all about development up there, and Horst marveled at Jennings’ performance in the Memphis game.
“I said, 'He doesn’t look tired,' ” he said. “I was really blown away. I told him after the game, ‘I’m really impressed with your conditioning.’ And he said Coach Brady played me like 37 minutes every night.”
Jennings will make his Milwaukee return Saturday evening at the BMO Harris Bradley Center against Atlanta. The crowd probably will give him a warm welcome.
However, the last day of his 10-day contract, Tuesday, is looming
No doubt Dean and Horst will discuss his future at length. They don’t ever recall an argument between them, but they do believe in constructive confrontations. They challenge each other.
And Dean’s persistence is appreciated, not tolerated, Horst said.
“The amount of decisions I have to make every single day are enormous,” said Horst. “They are as small as whether or not this guy should go on this trip and what level of per diem we should pay him, to who we should sign, to what we should do with the coach.”