With Ray Turner, Matt Andronicos, Chris Hogan and Taylor Bell not playing with the club in 2022, new coach Stephen Black has been forced to revamp the roster.

The quality of the club's new imports will have a major bearing on how competitive the Braves are in NBL1 and Black is confident the 198cm swingman will have a big impact on the league.

"Malcolm is a very talented, multi-faceted player with the ball in his hands," Black said.

"He's also very versatile in how he contributes positively to a team.

"Malcolm will spearhead our pace of play this year and will be a menace in the open court, as well as a playmaker in the half court."

Bernard helped his college team Xavier advance to the elite eight in the NCAA basketball tournament in 2017.

An 11th seed going into "March Madness", Xavier upset Maryland, Florida State and Arizona before losing to Gonzaga in the elite eight.

Read more: Bendigo Stadium to host two NBL matches next month

In the shock win over Arizona, Bernard scored a college career-high 15 points in the 73-71 win.

After finishing his college basketball career with Xavier, the well-travelled Bernard played in the NBA G-League, Belgium, Slovenia, Russia and with Rockhampton in Queensland's NBL1 league.

The 28-year-old averaged 26.5 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists in his one season for Rockhampton.

In that season he shot the ball at 42.75 per cent from the floor, with his three-point percentage below 30 per cent on 175 attempts.

The highlight of Bernard's European career was being voted to the all-Slovenian League first team and the all-defensive team.

Bernard is the Braves' second signing after guard Jake Lloyd re-signed with the club.

Further signings are expected to be announced in the next week, including another highly-rated import.

The Braves' 2022 season tips off against league newcomers Keilor Thunder at Keilor on April 23. Bendigo's first home game is Sunday, May 1.

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