Milwaukee Bucks guard Ryan Rollins makes an NBA career after ‘s‑‑‑ hits the fan’

Perseverance.

That was the word that came to mind when Milwaukee Bucks guard Ryan Rollins reflected on overcoming his challenges on the basketball court and when “s‑‑‑ hit the fan” off it.

“Things don’t go how you wanted to in the first place, and then things hit the fan,” Rollins told Andscape. “And when those things happen, you can see two ways to go about it: You keep going, or you just stop. I didn’t stop. And as you keep going, do the things the right way — how they are supposed to be done — and hope for the best.

“But at the end of the day, you put things in the right position, and God puts you in the right position where you’re supposed to be. And it meets up how it’s supposed to. Then, anything is possible. So, perseverance. Just keep going. S‑‑‑ hits the fan. Stuff don’t go how it’s supposed to. You just keep doing the right thing and keep going.”

Rollins’ breakthrough season should place him among the contenders for this year’s NBA Most Improved Player award. The 23-year-old is averaging career highs of 17 points, 5.4 assists, 1.5 steals and 32.2 minutes per game, nearly tripling his scoring and assist output from last year. The 6-foot-3, 180-pounder’s 58 games played and 51 starts are also career bests — and the Bucks still have 22 games left in the regular season.

Rollins and the Bucks host the Atlanta Hawks tonight on ESPN (9:30 p.m. ET).

“I always knew I was this good,” Rollins said. “I just needed the opportunity and needed a coach to trust me to be able to let me work through my mistakes and grow. I always knew my capabilities.”

The Golden State Warriors selected the former University of Toledo star 44th overall in the second round of the 2022 NBA draft, but his professional career got off to a rocky start.

The Detroit-area native didn’t play in the summer league as a rookie due to a stress fracture in his right foot, and he logged just 12 games for Golden State before undergoing season-ending surgery on the foot Feb. 8, 2023. Rollins acknowledged he needed to get stronger physically and mentally at that time.

His Golden State tenure ended about five months later, when he, Jordan Poole and Patrick Baldwin Jr. were traded to the Washington Wizards for veteran guard Chris Paul. Though his time with the Warriors was short, Rollins said he learned a lot from sharing a locker room with two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry.

“The main thing I would say is just his routine and how he went about it on and off the court,” Rollins said. “He had his routine on the court, what he did pregame, practices, how he was working out after practice. He was Steph Curry, but he was still acting like he was a rookie, in a way. He was very down to earth, very humble, communicated with you like he was just a regular person.

“That was probably the biggest thing I took from him, was just his humbleness and how he was down to earth. And just because of who he was, it didn’t make him go about and interact with anybody else differently.”

Rollins was frustrated with his initial role with the Wizards, as he was spending most of his time with their G League team. With several young players on Washington trying to solidify their NBA careers, he wondered whether the rebuilding franchise was a good fit for him. His time in D.C. came to an end Jan. 8, 2024, when he was waived after playing in just 10 games with the Wizards.

The main reason Washington cut Rollins, however, was because he was charged with seven counts of petty larceny in Alexandria, Virginia, for shoplifting small household items from a Target on multiple occasions in 2023. As part of Rollins’ plea, six of the seven charges were dismissed, and he received a 30-day suspended sentence, six months of unsupervised probation and was ordered to pay a $94 fine, along with restitution, according to The Washington Post.

Rollins expressed accountability for continuing a bad habit from his youth as a member of the Wizards.

“I was doing something I wasn’t supposed to be doing,” Rollins told Andscape. “It’s just bad habits, kind of picking them up from a young age for whatever the reason may be. You just pick up bad habits, and that was one of them. It bit me in the a–, at the end of the day. So, it was a blessing in disguise for me, too, being able to learn from that and look at a big picture of it. So, it worked out how it was supposed to. …

“I feel like I was kind of taking things for granted a little bit in that situation. Kind of feel like I was even a little bit entitled. So, just me looking back and understanding that and looking myself in the mirror and actually looking at a big picture and big perspective of the thing, it was a blessing in disguise at the end of the day.”

Rollins initially returned to the Detroit area after he was waived by Washington, receiving support from his family. His next stop was Phoenix, to work out with NBA skills trainer Phil Beckner while hoping for another NBA opportunity. Rollins said the Bucks and the Brooklyn Nets showed interest.

When asked how he got through that tough period, Rollins said: “Besides myself, God, my family, my mom, I just think the support of my agents. They stayed with me. They didn’t try to waver once things hit the fan. So, I appreciate them for that dearly. And just them putting me in a situation where I went to work out with Phil Beckner during that time in Phoenix. So. he was a big part of that phase of my life. Him helping me out and just to keep my body right, keep my offense and basketball skills right.”

On Feb. 21, 2024, the Bucks signed Rollins to a two-way contract. Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said Rollins’ mistake with Washington didn’t have any influence on him.

“If we are judged by one single bad moment, than we are all f‑‑‑ed,” Rivers told Andscape. “We are all screwed. We’ve all made bad [decisions]. I’m 64 years old and I still do stupid stuff off the court. We just do. We are all f‑‑‑ ups. It was so funny when they brought [Rollins’ mistake] up to me. I was like, ‘When was that?’ …

“At the end of the day, we have to give these guys second, third and fourth opportunities. Now, at some point, you let people go. And I’ve done that. But the human spirit is alive and well, and it’s alive and well here. We have a lot of reclamation projects here. A.J. Green didn’t get drafted. These guys need to be coached. When people say you can’t coach guys, that’s bulls‑‑‑. If you don’t coach them, you’re going to fail.”

Rollins only played in three games for Milwaukee in the 2023-24 season after being signed in February, while also playing 11 contests with the G League Wisconsin Herd. Rollins said he was influenced by veteran guards Damian Lillard, Malik Beasley and Patrick Beverley, who were on the Bucks that season, and that he also appreciated “the big trust” from Milwaukee vice president of global scouting Ryan Hoover, who is also from the Detroit area. Rollins said his play during the 2024 summer league, where he averaged 20.4 points, 7.3 assists and 3.3 steals in four games, also helped his development.

Whatever ego Rollins had about playing in the G League or summer league while with the Wizards disappeared with the Bucks.

“I went into it with a gratitude kind of mindset,” Rollins said. “I was playing in the G League. I did pretty good in summer league. After that, I didn’t touch the G [League] again. They gave me an opportunity, and I made the most of it.”

Said Rivers: “He was in the G League and we had a practice, and I was like, ‘Who the [expletive] is this guy?’ And I said, ‘Let’s keep him up.’ Where they got it wrong is, they had him at point guard. He’s just a basketball player.”

Rollins finally solidified himself as an NBA-level player after he averaged 6.2 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 53 appearances during the 2024-25 season. He said his breakthrough came when he had 12 points, five rebounds, four made 3-pointers and five steals in a 99-85 win over the Toronto Raptors on Nov. 12, 2024, despite a shoulder injury. Rollins was rewarded with a three-year, $12 million contract in July of last year.

“I got hurt [in the Toronto] game. I messed my shoulder up, and I was out for a minute,” Rollins said. “I think showing them that I hurt myself and I was still willing to come back and play and show my toughness[was important]. I missed two or three games and then I came back.

“I guess me doing that and still being able to produce in the way I was … I just showed my toughness and grit. I showed how much I wanted it, and I made the most of the opportunity I was given. Ever since then, I’ve had steady progression. They gained more trust in me, and I gained more confidence in myself.”

The Bucks announced July 1, 2025, that they stretched the remaining $113 million on Lillard’s contract in order to acquire free agent center Myles Turner. Milwaukee didn’t find another notable point guard to replace Lillard, instead turning to Rollins.

Since then, Rollins has shown he’s capable of being the Bucks’ starting point guard. He scored a career-high 32 points in a 120-110 victory over the Warriors on Oct. 30, 2025, and is coming off the best month of his NBA career — averaging 20.9 points and 5.3 assists while shooting 50% from 3-point range in February.

While the journey to become a Bucks player was a challenging and complicated one for Rollins, he’s earned the job and has a mature outlook on his career going forward.

“I have goals for sure, but I kind of take it day by day,” Rollins said. “The journey is the biggest part of that. You just keep doing what you’ve been doing, keep consistent with your work, your habits, things that got you to the point where you are. And I feel like after that, it’s all in God’s hands. You are going to put things on your plate that’s supposed to be for you.

“So, of course I would like to be an All-Star. Of course, I would like all the accolades. I’m not really getting my hopes up too high for this or that. I’m going to just appreciate the journey and keep doing what I’ve been doing. What is for me is going to be for me.”

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