# Malcolm Brogdon
**Malcolm Brogdon** (born 1992) is an American former professional basketball player who played nine NBA seasons as a combo guard from 2016 to 2025, winning Rookie of the Year with the [Milwaukee Bucks](https://www.edgepedia.org/milwaukee-bucks) in 2017 and Sixth Man of the Year with the [Boston Celtics](https://www.edgepedia.org/boston-celtics) in 2023. Listed at 6'4" (1.93 m) and 229 lb, he retired in October 2025 and returned to the [University of Virginia](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-virginia), his alma mater, as a strategic advisor to men's basketball in March 2026.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio) • [2](https://www.nba.com/bucks/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/) • [3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1992, USA; 6'4" (1.93 m), 229 lb (104 kg)[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio) |
| Draft | Second round, 36th overall, by the Milwaukee Bucks in 2016[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) |
| Rookie season | NBA Rookie of the Year 2016-17; 10.2 points and 4.2 assists per game in 75 games[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) |
| 2018-19 season | Became the 8th player in NBA history to shoot 50% from the field, 40% on threes, and 90% from the line; led the NBA in free throw percentage (.928)[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio) |
| Sixth Man of the Year | 2022-23 with Boston, with 60 first-place votes; the third Celtic to win the award[4](https://as.com/us/masdeporte/malcolm-brogdon-gano-el-premio-al-sexto-hombre-del-ano-de-la-nba-n/) |
| NBA teams | Milwaukee (2017-19), Indiana (2019-22), Boston (2022-23), Portland (2023-24), Washington (2024-25)[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) |
| College | Virginia, 2012-16: 1,809 career points, ninth on the school's all-time list; No. 15 retired in 2017[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) |
| Post-retirement | Strategic advisor to Virginia men's basketball since March 2026; NBPA vice president 2019-25[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) |
## College career at Virginia
Brogdon played for coach [Tony Bennett](https://www.edgepedia.org/tony-bennett) at the University of Virginia from 2012 to 2016, helping the Cavaliers win 111 games, four NCAA tournament appearances, two ACC regular-season titles, and one ACC Tournament championship.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) In 2016 he became the first player to be named ACC Player of the Year and ACC Defensive Player of the Year in the same season, adding unanimous consensus first-team [All-America](https://www.edgepedia.org/all-america) and NABC Defensive Player of the Year honors.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) He had been a consensus second-team All-American in 2015.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon)
His career totals placed him on several of the program's leaderboards: ninth in scoring with 1,809 points, first in free throw percentage (87.6%), second in games played (136), fifth in minutes played (4,157), sixth in 3-point percentage (36.5%), seventh in 3-pointers (185), and ninth in free throws (422).[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) Virginia retired his No. 15 on February 20, 2017, before an ACC game against Miami.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) Bennett, speaking before the retirement ceremony, said he had never coached a player with Brogdon's drive and dedication.[5](https://giving.virginia.edu/stories/former-cavalier-star-malcolm-brogdon-continues-to-win-on-and-off-the-court/)
Brogdon also completed a [Master of Public Policy](https://www.edgepedia.org/master-of-public-policy) degree from UVA's Frank Batten School in 2016, using the extra year of eligibility his redshirt season provided, after an undergraduate degree in history.[6](https://www.nba.com/pacers/news/7-things-know-about-malcolm-brogdon) • [7](https://batten.virginia.edu/news/the-education-of-malcolm-brogdon/)
## Milwaukee Bucks (2016-2019)
Despite his decorated college career, Brogdon said he was "extremely disappointed" to fall to the second round, where [Milwaukee](https://www.edgepedia.org/milwaukee) selected him 36th overall in 2016.[6](https://www.nba.com/pacers/news/7-things-know-about-malcolm-brogdon) As a rookie he played 75 games with 28 starts, averaging 10.2 points, 4.2 assists, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.1 steals in 26.4 minutes, and won Rookie of the Year over [Joel Embiid](https://www.edgepedia.org/joel-embiid) and Dario Saric.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio) • [8](https://as.com/us/us/2017/06/27/masdeporte/1498573265_188000.html) He was the first Rookie of the Year winner taken outside the first round since the single-draft era began in 1966, and the first Bucks player to win the award since [Kareem Abdul-Jabbar](https://www.edgepedia.org/kareem-abdul-jabbar) in 1969-70.[8](https://as.com/us/us/2017/06/27/masdeporte/1498573265_188000.html) On December 31, 2016, playing at Chicago, Brogdon put up 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists, becoming the only rookie in Bucks franchise history to log a triple-double.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio)
His third season produced the shooting line that defined his Milwaukee tenure. In 2018-19 he started all 64 of his appearances, averaged career highs of 15.6 points and 4.5 rebounds, and became the eighth player in NBA history to shoot better than 50% from the field, 40% from three, and 90% from the free-throw line, leading the league at 92.8% from the stripe.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio) A plantar fascia tear in his right foot, suffered March 15 in Miami, cost him the last 13 regular-season games and the first eight playoff games; he returned exactly seven weeks and five days after the injury, scoring 10 points in 16 minutes in the Bucks' Game 5 clincher over Boston, and gave Milwaukee 15 points in almost 27 minutes in the Eastern Conference finals opener against Toronto.[9](https://www.nba.com/news/malcolm-brogdon-chasing-championship-free-agency)
## Indiana Pacers (2019-2022)
A restricted free agent after that season, Brogdon signed a four-year, $85 million contract with the [Indiana Pacers](https://www.edgepedia.org/indiana-pacers), who acquired him from Milwaukee on July 6, 2019.[5](https://giving.virginia.edu/stories/former-cavalier-star-malcolm-brogdon-continues-to-win-on-and-off-the-court/) • [1](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio) He said he left Milwaukee for Indiana because he preferred playing point guard rather than sharing backcourt duties.[10](https://www.nba.com/news/film-study-malcolm-brogdon-boston-celtics) Over three Indiana seasons he started all 146 games he appeared in, averaging 18.9 points per game.[11](https://cdn.nba.com/teams/uploads/sites/1610612754/2025/10/2025-26-Indiana-Pacers-Media-Guide-web.pdf) In 2020-21 he appeared in 44 of the team's first 46 games while carrying a heavy workload before a hamstring injury ended his regular season.[12](https://www.nba.com/pacers/news/player-review-2021-malcolm-brogdon)
## Boston, Portland, and Washington (2022-2025)
On July 9, 2022, Boston acquired Brogdon from Indiana in exchange for players including [Daniel Theis](https://www.edgepedia.org/daniel-theis) and a future first-round draft pick.[13](https://cdn.nba.com/teams/uploads/sites/1610612754/2022/10/2022-23-Pacers-Media-Guide-compressed.pdf) Moving to a bench role alongside [Jayson Tatum](https://www.edgepedia.org/jayson-tatum), Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, and Derrick White, he won the 2022-23 Sixth Man of the Year award, announced before Game 3 of the 76ers-Nets playoff series. He received 60 first-place votes, 35 second-place votes, and three third-place votes, beating [Immanuel Quickley](https://www.edgepedia.org/immanuel-quickley) and Bobby Portis, and became the third Celtic to win the award after Kevin McHale (1984, 1985) and Bill Walton (1986).[4](https://as.com/us/masdeporte/malcolm-brogdon-gano-el-premio-al-sexto-hombre-del-ano-de-la-nba-n/) He also became the second player to win both Rookie of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year.[4](https://as.com/us/masdeporte/malcolm-brogdon-gano-el-premio-al-sexto-hombre-del-ano-de-la-nba-n/)
Subsequent trades sent him to Portland for the 2023-24 season and Washington for 2024-25.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) Injuries marked his later years: his Wizards career began with thumb surgery after he hurt his right thumb in practice in October 2024, and The Washington Post noted that injuries had been a recurring problem in recent seasons.[14](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/10/08/malcolm-brogdon-thumb/) He announced his retirement from the NBA on October 15, 2025, after nine seasons.[2](https://www.nba.com/bucks/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/)
## Players association and activism
Brogdon served as Vice President of the National Basketball Players Association Executive Committee from 2019 to 2025, was re-elected in 2022, and was a key leader in negotiating the 2023 collective bargaining agreement and navigating the league's 2020 return-to-play during the pandemic.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) He had volunteered as Milwaukee's union representative during his rookie season, the first player to raise his hand at an early-season NBPA meeting, according to former Bucks guard [Jason Terry](https://www.edgepedia.org/jason-terry).[7](https://batten.virginia.edu/news/the-education-of-malcolm-brogdon/)
His activism draws on a family history of civil rights work: his maternal grandfather, John Hurst Adams, a former civil rights leader and president of Paul Quinn College, and great-grandfather Eugene Avery Adams Sr., who helped launch the first statewide civil rights organization in segregated [South Carolina](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-carolina).[5](https://giving.virginia.edu/stories/former-cavalier-star-malcolm-brogdon-continues-to-win-on-and-off-the-court/) • [7](https://batten.virginia.edu/news/the-education-of-malcolm-brogdon/) The JHA Education Project, named for his grandfather, funds literacy, mentoring, and infrastructure programs for students in underserved communities.[5](https://giving.virginia.edu/stories/former-cavalier-star-malcolm-brogdon-continues-to-win-on-and-off-the-court/) A trip to Malawi with his grandparents sparked an interest in clean-water initiatives that continues through his foundation's work installing drinking wells in remote villages across Africa.[7](https://batten.virginia.edu/news/the-education-of-malcolm-brogdon/) In June 2020, five days after George Floyd's killing, he spoke at a march in Atlanta organized by Celtics guard Jaylen Brown near his childhood home on Auburn Avenue.[7](https://batten.virginia.edu/news/the-education-of-malcolm-brogdon/)
## Personal life and post-retirement role
Brogdon is married to Tori (Janowski) Brogdon, a former Virginia volleyball standout, and they have three children.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) In March 2026 he returned to the University of Virginia as a strategic advisor to men's basketball.[3](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon) In a 2023 interview with UVA President Jim Ryan, he listed post-career goals that included moving to Europe with his family and continuing his clean-water work.[15](https://www.news.virginia.edu/content/inside-uva-nba-great-malcolm-brogdon-education-clean-water-and-his-future)
## References
1. [Malcolm Brogdon player bio, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/bio)
2. [Malcolm Brogdon news, Milwaukee Bucks, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/bucks/player/1627763/malcolm-brogdon/)
3. [Malcolm Brogdon, Virginia Cavaliers Official Athletic Site](https://virginiasports.com/staff/malcolm-brogdon)
4. [Malcolm Brogdon ganó el premio al Sexto Hombre del Año de la NBA, AS.com](https://as.com/us/masdeporte/malcolm-brogdon-gano-el-premio-al-sexto-hombre-del-ano-de-la-nba-n/)
5. [Former Cavalier Star Malcolm Brogdon Continues to Win, Give to UVA](https://giving.virginia.edu/stories/former-cavalier-star-malcolm-brogdon-continues-to-win-on-and-off-the-court/)
6. [7 Things To Know About Malcolm Brogdon, Indiana Pacers, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/pacers/news/7-things-know-about-malcolm-brogdon)
7. [The Education of Malcolm Brogdon, UVA Batten School](https://batten.virginia.edu/news/the-education-of-malcolm-brogdon/)
8. [¡Sorpresa! Brogdon deja sin el Rookie del Año a Embiid y Saric, AS.com](https://as.com/us/us/2017/06/27/masdeporte/1498573265_188000.html)
9. [Brogdon's return bolsters championship hopes, free-agent potential, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/news/malcolm-brogdon-chasing-championship-free-agency)
10. [Film Study: Malcolm Brogdon has the tools to give Celtics' offense a boost, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/news/film-study-malcolm-brogdon-boston-celtics)
11. [2025-26 Indiana Pacers Media Guide, NBA.com](https://cdn.nba.com/teams/uploads/sites/1610612754/2025/10/2025-26-Indiana-Pacers-Media-Guide-web.pdf)
12. [Player Review 2021: Malcolm Brogdon, Indiana Pacers, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/pacers/news/player-review-2021-malcolm-brogdon)
13. [2022-23 Indiana Pacers Media Guide, NBA.com](https://cdn.nba.com/teams/uploads/sites/1610612754/2022/10/2022-23-Pacers-Media-Guide-compressed.pdf)
14. [Malcolm Brogdon's Wizards career begins with thumb surgery, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/10/08/malcolm-brogdon-thumb/)
15. ['Inside UVA': NBA Great Malcolm Brogdon on Education, Clean Water and His Future, UVA Today](https://www.news.virginia.edu/content/inside-uva-nba-great-malcolm-brogdon-education-clean-water-and-his-future)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Basketball and court team sports › Basketball players and coaches (biographies) › Current NBA players › Point guards*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license