'New chapter': Pinnacle High grad Nico Mannion playing for Milwaukee Bucks in NBA Summer League

LAS VEGAS — Nico Mannion punched a higher floor on that one.

Seeing an open lane, Mannion exploded by the defender, took off and finished two hands over the top Friday night at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

Welcome back to the NBA.

“I was little surprised, too, when I see that much space in the paint,” he said. “It’s surprising to me. Being over in Europe the past two years, no defensive three seconds, I haven’t seen the paint open like that for a while. Just saw the paint open. Just went with my instincts.”

Mannion is playing for the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2023 NBA Summer League after having last played in the NBA his rookie year with the Golden State Warriors in 2020-21.

The Pinnacle High graduate finished with 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting (1-of-6 from 3), four rebounds and three assists to four turnovers in a 92-85 win Friday over the Denver Nuggets.

“It felt great,” Mannion said. “Another opportunity. That’s how I like to look at it. It’s a blessing to be here, being able to play with a great group and coaching staff.”

Mannion followed that up with six points on 2-of-14 shooting (0-for-9 from 3) and six assists to only two turnovers in Milwaukee's 84-75 win Saturday over the Phoenix Suns at Cox Pavilion.

“One of things that I stressed to them, because I’ve been through this myself as far as playing on summer league teams and trying to get jobs, guys that can just go out there and just execute whatever the coaches tell them and take care of the ball, and he does that,” new Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin said about Mannion.

“When you do that, you’re going to look good and you’re going to give yourself a chance. In this league, you’re always looking for a point guard that can just run the show, get guys organized.”

Griffin spent a decent amount of time talking with Mannion during breaks in action Friday.

“Your point guard is an extension of the coaching staff,” Griffin said. “He’s a very intellectual guard and he’s able to relay a couple of things. Sometimes you check things to see what they see. If it’s better, you go with it. The object is to win the game. It’s great to have his veteran presence on our team.”

With a beard and short haircut, Mannion looks bigger and stronger than the guy who had all that frizzy red hair and wore t-shirts in his one-and-done year at Arizona.

Mannion has overcome an intestinal virus back in 2021 in which he lost a ton of weight. He first started experiencing the health issue with the Italian national team during the Tokyo Olympics.

“Moment where basketball had to be put to the side,” he said. “Health was first priority, of course. Difficult couple of months for me, difficult year to return to playing. That’s all in the past. I feel 100 percent now. I feel good. Since I returned, I never missed a game.”

He’s back healthy — and confident.

“It’s been a while,” Mannion said. “Feel really good. Really good. I put on a little bit more weight.”

And has a new look.

“After what I went through, kind of just wanted to start a new chapter,” Mannion said.

Mannion’s contract with Virtus Bologna expired after the 2022-23 season. So, he took an opportunity to join the Bucks for their summer league and had a strong performance Friday.

“It was a good fit,” Mannion said. “Good opportunity.”

Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Pinnacle High grad Nico Mannion shines for Bucks in NBA Summer League