"I was praying for the Bucks," says Maker

Early draft boards had Thon Maker being taken at the bottom of the first round, maybe early in the second, with uncertainty about his game, his age and his potential.

The Milwaukee Bucks ignored all of that and went with their gut after seeing Maker up close at their workout, using their 10th pick on the Sudanese-Australian big man.

Speaking with Thon just moments after the shock selection, he told 7Sport.com.au via Cisco teleconference, that despite all the external chatter and the perceived risk of bypassing college and nominating for the draft, it was all worth it.

“I just had to look at myself at how ready I was, he said.

“[I knew] what I can provide to the team right away and what I can provide to the team long-term and how I am able to push those things to better myself.

“Looking at that and I saw the opportunity, I had to take it right away and I'm glad I did.”

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Maker worked out at the Bucks facility last week and says it was the confidence he saw from the team’s coaches in his game that gave him a inkling he could be heading to Milwaukee.

“I was comfortable after I had my workout with Milwaukee,” he said

“I was very confident and I was just praying that that was it, because after the workout I spent dinner, lunch with the front office staff and coaching staff, but I think I surprised myself with that one.”

Not playing at an elite prep school in the United States and not playing in college limited the exposure Maker had to scouts and team executives of how exactly he stacked up against his fellow draft class members.

Instead, Maker chose to keep a low profile as he worked away in the recluses of Orangeville Prep in Canada, fine-tuning his game to be less YouTube mixtape star and more fundamentally sound, modern NBA big.

“In high school they show different things but through these team workouts they [Bucks] were able to see me against the guys that are coming out of college and they're like ‘Wow, he's actually more than what they say he is’, so it was really a pressure for me and I love pressure so it worked out.

“It also put more pressure on me to keep working and get better In a short time period, so when teams get a chance to look at me, they're like ‘Right! He can do all that? Ok we didn't know he can do that'."

Maker travelled around the country ahead of the draft working out for numerous teams trying to prove he was more substance over style.

He definitely proved enough to the Bucks.