Bucks Rookie Nate Ament Cleared for Post-Giannis Era Opener

The Milwaukee Bucks are officially kicking off the post-Giannis Antetokounmpo era, and their first major victory of the season is simply getting their lottery pick out of the trainer's room. Rookie forward Nate Ament has been cleared to play in Wednesday's season opener against the Washington Wizards.

Ament had been nursing a right ankle sprain since October 7, when he rolled it during a preseason exhibition against the Oklahoma City Thunder. For a minute there, it looked like the 13th overall pick out of Tennessee might have to watch his NBA debut in street clothes.

"Underdog NBA reported Ament is listed available to play Wednesday."

Instead, head coach Taylor Jenkins confirmed the 19-year-old was a full participant in practice this week, taking contact and passing all the necessary physical tests to get the green light.

Getting Ament on the floor is a nice moral victory for a franchise hitting the reset button, but anyone expecting him to immediately take over the offense needs to take a deep breath. Reports out of Milwaukee suggest the rookie is not in line for a massive workload right out of the gate.

That means if you are staring at the betting board trying to talk yourself into the over on Ament's rookie props against a notoriously soft Washington defense, you are flying blind. Opportunity is everything in the NBA, and right now, his minutes are a total mystery.

The Bucks have a lot to figure out as they navigate this new reality, and easing their prized rookie into the rotation is step one. We will see exactly how long Jenkins keeps the training wheels on when the ball tips off on Wednesday night.