UConn’s Andre Jackson Jr. becoming a sponge as he prepares for summer league with Milwaukee Bucks

At UConn, Andre Jackson Jr. was the teammate pouring out knowledge and experience for newcomers to absorb.

Now a rookie with the Milwaukee Bucks, Jackson is the sponge.

He sat in a room overlooking the Bucks’ practice court on Saturday as he talked with media on a Zoom call after practicing for the team’s upcoming summer league games, the lighting was more focused on the court behind him than on his face. It was similar to how Jackson spent much of his final season at UConn, putting the game ahead of himself.

Since he received the call at his watch party in Manhattan, surrounded by several UConn teammates, Dan Hurley and Kimani Young and all of his family and friends, Jackson has spent the last week or so getting adjusted to his new scenario.

“It’s definitely different, but I’ve been a rookie before and when I first got to UConn I was in that position. It’s great because when you’re the youngest guy, when you’re the rookie, you get to learn so much from the other guys and there’s so much information to take in and so many new things to learn,” Jackson said. “I actually honestly like being in this position almost more, it’s been a great experience.”

One of his first stops when he touched down in Milwaukee was Fiserv Forum, the arena houses both the Bucks and Big East champion Marquette.

The last time he was there, Jan. 11, 2023, Jackson scored nine points with four rebounds, six assists, a steal and a block in what was a tightly contested 82-76 loss, UConn’s third of the season.

“(Friday) I was just walking around, scoping the landscape, seeing what’s going on because I do somewhat feel like a visitor still,” he said. “But now this is my home, so just getting used to it and just embracing it, honestly. And maybe crack a couple jokes here and there about Marquette but I definitely love this place and I’m very happy to be here.”

UConn responded by blowing out the Golden Eagles at the XL Center, though Marquette completed the season series with a thrilling two-point decision at Madison Square Garden that knocked the Huskies out of the Big East Tournament.

But Jackson got the national championship trophy and none of that matters now.

After his phone rang on June 22, texts came flowing in from what seemed like “the entire organization.” MarJon Beauchamp, the Bucks’ first round pick in 2022 readying for his second professional season, has been particularly helpful to Jackson as they both prepare for the summer league slate.

“He leads by example,” Jackson said. “Just watching him in drills and watching the way he approaches the game and his tendencies on the court just can teach me a lot about how to be a factor on this team. He did it, so really just talking to him a lot and seeing what he went through last year when he was a rookie.”

He has yet to meet the Bucks’ stars, like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday who aren’t on the summer league roster, but learning from them, he says, will be the most exciting part.

“(I’m trying) to be like a sponge and soak up all the information so I can add it to my game and become a better basketball player because I know that they’ve done it and they know what they’re doing,” Jackson said. “Really just soaking up all the information from those guys when they come in.”

And, though he hasn’t met him yet, Jackson already knows Holiday well.

“I watched a lot of Jrue Holiday, like forever,” Jackson said. “That’s my dad’s favorite player so growing up he was showing me a lot of Jrue just because of the way that he moves his feet and he’s just really athletic and he has some of the best defensive mechanics that I’ve ever seen.”

Jackson, an ultra-competitor who’s won at every level he’s played on, has a mindset that fits in perfectly with the Bucks, one of the top contenders in the Eastern Conference for the last several years.

“It’s a great team, great organization, great coaches and a great front office. A bunch of people all pushing in the same direction, trying to achieve the same goal,” he said. “So I think there’s no better place for me.”

More Huskies in summer leagues

There will be a meeting of defending champs when Jackson and the Bucks open their summer league schedule against the Denver Nuggets on Friday (5 p.m. ESPNU). Before then, James Bouknight, the 11th overall pick in 2021, will look to get on track prior to his third NBA season with the Charlotte Hornets. Bouknight’s first game of the summer will be against No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on Monday (8 p.m. ESPN).

Jordan Hawkins, the 14th overall pick in this year’s draft, begins his summer league with the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday against the Minnesota Timberwolves (4:30 p.m. NBA TV). UConn fans won’t have to turn the channel as Adama Sanogo and the Chicago Bulls play the Toronto Raptors right after.

Hawkins and Bouknight, UConn’s two lottery picks under Hurley, could match up when the Pelicans play the Hornets on July 13 (7:30 p.m. NBA TV).