News broke late Tuesday evening that former UConn star and Milwaukee Bucks wing Andre Jackson Jr. signed a deal with the Toronto Raptors ahead of training camp for the 2026-27 NBA season.
Jackson played three seasons in Storrs from 2020-23 and helped lead UConn to its fifth national championship in 2023, where he stuffed the stat sheet in 36 games with 6.7 PPG, 6.2 RPG & 4.7 APG. The Amsterdam, New York, native played 85 games in a Husky uniform before declaring for the draft after the title run.
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Following UConn’s championship, Jackson was scooped up by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 36th pick in the second round in the 2023 NBA Draft. He spent the next three seasons in Milwaukee in all types of roles. His best season came his second year in 2024-25, when he played in 67 games with 43 starts and averaged 3.4 PPG and 2.7 RPG. Last season, he only played 8.5 MPG across 48 appearances, collecting many DNPs from head coach Doc Rivers.
Jackson is looking for a fresh start north of the border, but he is going to have to earn it. Toronto has all but one of its roster spots filled out heading into training camp, so he will be fighting for the final roster spot. The contract itself is an Exhibit 10 contract, meaning it’s a one-year, non-guaranteed contract that gives the Raptors his G-League rights should he not make the opening night roster.
UConn had nine players suit up in the NBA last season and is adding Tarris Reed Jr. and Alex Karaban to the list, but losing Tyrese Martin after he signed with FC Barcelona overseas. If Jackson plays any minutes in either Toronto or with another team in the NBA this year, UConn would more likely than not have 10 players record minutes in the association in a single season for the first time since the 2000’s.
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