So what if the rookie is older than the Greek Freak, Jabari Parker and even Rashad Vaughn, Milwaukee’s first-round pick in 2015?

“Just his poise, his composure,” teammate Greg Monroe said, citing Brogdon’s attributes. “He’s a rookie, but he’s about 30 in real life. So he’s really a composed, mature player. He picked up things really fast. That’s the main thing in this league – once you pick it up, things slow down and become a little easier.

“We’ve got guys in this league who were drafted last and are All-Stars now. We’ve got guys who were drafted first and it didn’t work out. It’s all about what you do once you’re in.”

Brogdon developed a nice floor chemistry with Monroe and veteran Jason Terry on Milwaukee’s second unit before he got upgraded as a starter. As for Monroe’s jibe about being 30, that was meant for Brogdon’s ears – they use adjacent stalls in the Bucks’ home locker room. It’s not a sore spot, either, because he and the Bucks knew exactly what they were getting in each other.

“The draft is never perfect. They always now have the ‘redrafts’ to give people something to do,” coach Jason Kidd said. “But Malcolm is a basketball player. Sometimes being older hurts you, for whatever reason. Everybody wants to go young – not everyone but some teams. I think it’s a matter of fit. We felt he fit what we do, being a bigger guard. Understanding his IQ and he knows how to play basketball.

“So was he underestimated? I don’t know, I think a lot of teams liked him. We feel he has a huge upside still. Being 24, there’s a lot for him to learn and he wants to learn.”

From Brogdon’s side, his agents had prepared him for a longer draft night than he might have wanted. But they identified Milwaukee as a possible destination – the Bucks used their first pick on Thon Maker, No. 10, then hoped through 25 more Brogdon still would be on the board.

“This was one of my top teams for where I wanted to fall to, whether in the first or second round,” Brogdon said.

The appeal was obvious: Kidd as head coach. If you’re a big, seemingly heady, aspiring NBA playmaker, there is no one from whom you’d rather learn.

“He’s arguably the greatest point guard, one of the greatest players of all time,” Brogdon said. “To play the same position as him, it’s huge. I’ve learned a lot. I don’t think there’s anybody I could learn it any better from.”

Kidd, he said, has been demanding and exacting on the rookie. “He’s a guy who has high expectations for anyone who plays for him, but more so for his point guards,” Brogdon said. “His mind is special for the game. That puts more expectations on me as a point guard – he’s hard on me – but it makes me better.”

New York coach Jeff Hornacek knows a little about overachieving late picks. He went No. 46 overall in 1986 out of Iowa State but wound up leading his class – which included Ron Harper, Chuck Person, Brad Daugherty and Dell Curry – in minutes, points and assists.

“The Bucks saw he was a solid player,” Hornacek said of Brogdon. “He knows how to play the game. He’s been in systems. Sometimes those guys get overlooked, because when the draft comes up, teams are looking at ‘potential’ a lot. So guys like that kind of slip through. He’s doing a nice job for them – he’s solid defensively, he’s making nice passes. When they give him a drive, he takes it. That’s a big key for those guys.”

Brogdon, who has both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, might add to his achievements if the NBA awarded a “true rookie” of the year title. As it is, the entire Class of 2016 is chasing Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, finally healthy three seasons after he was first drafted.

But that’s just “extra stuff” about which he’s not worried, the rookie said. The same goes for social media – Brogdon intentionally isn’t on Twitter, so he didn’t see how NBA timelines blew up after his recent dunks over Kyrie Irving and, especially, LeBron James.

“I want to be low key with no distractions,” Brogdon said. “I think my play will talk for me, It will show people and it will show the league.

“I pride myself on what I do every night, I pride myself on my work ethic and how I carry myself. I want to be mature in my approach but focused and disciplined.”

Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.

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