Eric Bledsoe to Start in Place of Malcolm Brogdon for Bucks vs. Spurs

Newly acquired point guard Eric Bledsoe will start in place of Malcolm Brogdon for the Milwaukee Bucks when they face the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night, according to Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Friday's contest will mark Bledsoe's Bucks debut after they acquired him in a trade with the Phoenix Suns for Greg Monroe and a first-round draft pick.

Head coach Jason Kidd announced that Bledsoe would start, and mentioned the need to get him acclimated to his new surroundings:

"For his first day of shootaround, you could see the dynamic of his speed, something that we don't have at that position. We'll find out here quickly [how he fits with the team]. It's going to take some time for him to understand his teammates and understand the defensive and offensive schemes, but he's a pro, he's a very smart young man and he can help us, hopefully. He's going to start tonight. We're going to start him and start that relationship with the starting group."

The 27-year-old Bledsoe has appeared in just three games this season, averaging 15.7 points, 3.0 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game.

He had been sent home by the Suns after posting a tweet that read, "I don't wanna be here."

Bledsoe is coming off his best NBA campaign, however, as he put up a career-high 21.1 points and 6.3 assists per contest last season.

Brogdon has started nine games this season, and he is producing to the tune of 16.2 points and 4.9 assists per game after winning the NBA Rookie of the Year award last season.

With Brogdon moving to the bench, Bledsoe will start alongside Tony Snell, although there will likely be plenty of scenarios that call for both Bledsoe and Brogdon being on the floor at the same time.

Regardless of how the starting lineup is handled moving forward, Milwaukee is now a much deeper team in the backcourt, and it has more offensive support for MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo.