Kel'el Ware Opens 2026-27 With the Bucks After Leaving Miami
Kel'el Ware is now Milwaukee's center in No. 9, five games into his first season with the Bucks after spending last season with Miami. He's off to a mixed start and isn't on the injury report. Last season he averaged 11.1 points and 9.0 rebounds over 77 games with the Heat.
By the Bucks Nightly Desk · updated 4 d ago01The story of the nightNew Address, Same Number NineKel'el Ware is suiting up for the Milwaukee Bucks this season, wearing No.
Kel'el Ware is suiting up for the Milwaukee Bucks this season, wearing No. 9 after spending last season with the Miami Heat. He's a 22-year-old center out of Indiana, listed at 7-0 and 230 pounds, now in his second NBA season. The move puts him in a new rotation and a new system, and the first five games of 2026-27 are the only read so far on how he fits. He's not on the injury report, and there's no injury history to track for him entering this stretch of the schedule.
02Five Games Into the Bucks TenureWare's first five games with Milwaukee have gone up and down.
Ware's first five games with Milwaukee have gone up and down. He opened October 5 against Minnesota with 14 points and 12 rebounds in 23.6 minutes in a loss, then dropped to 10 points and two boards in a loss to Charlotte on October 11, a game where he finished minus-22. He bounced back October 7 against Oklahoma City with 18 points and 12 rebounds in a win. Against Chicago on October 14 he managed just five points and five rebounds in a loss. Most recently, October 16 against Indiana, he scored 13 points with three rebounds and one assist in 25.4 minutes in a win, though he finished minus-13 in that one.
03What He Did in Miami Last SeasonLast season, playing for Miami, Ware appeared in 77 games and averaged 22.1 minutes, 11.1 points, 9.0 rebounds, 0.7…
Last season, playing for Miami, Ware appeared in 77 games and averaged 22.1 minutes, 11.1 points, 9.0 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 0.8 steals and 1.1 blocks. He shot 53.0 percent from the field, 39.5 percent from three and 74.0 percent from the line, with a true shooting mark of 61.6 percent. His usage rate sat at 17.4, and his plus-minus for the season was minus-0.9. Those numbers mark him as a rebounding and rim-protecting center who also stretched the floor from three at a high clip for his position, with a turnover rate kept low at 0.8 per game.
04His Last Stretch With the HeatThe final games on his log from last season show real swings in role.
The final games on his log from last season show real swings in role. On April 4 against Washington, he played 35.8 minutes and put up 24 points and 19 rebounds in a win, finishing plus-7. He followed with 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists in a 21.6-minute win over Washington again on April 10. In between, against Toronto, his minutes shrank to 17.2 and then 11.4 across two losses, with lines of five points and eight rebounds, then seven points and four rebounds. He closed that run with 16 points and seven rebounds in 29.2 minutes in a win over Atlanta on April 12.
05Health ReportWare is not on the injury report right now.
Ware is not on the injury report right now. There's no injury history listed for him, so his five Milwaukee appearances this season have come with no absences tied to his health. That's worth noting given how physical the center position is and how much his role depends on him being available for rebounding and interior defense minutes.
Gobert10.9 ppg
MIA