NBA Draft 2017 Prospect Watch: Bronson Koenig

Bronson Koenig was a staple for the Wisconsin Badgers the last four years, but now he is a 2017 NBA Draft hopeful. How would he fit in the league?

Who is Bronson Koenig?

Over the past four years, Bronson Koenig become one of the most decorated players in the history of Wisconsin Badgers basketball.

He ended his career with two Final Four appearances, one National Championship Game appearance, and made the Sweet 16 in all four of his collegiate seasons. In addition, Koenig was named to the Third-Team All-Big Ten as a junior and was a Second-Team selection as a senior.

Entering the NBA Draft, it does not seem like Koenig will be selected in either of the two rounds, but there remains a chance somebody might take a chance on him in the second round as a backup point guard.

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Koenig was not invited to the NBA Combine this season and was injured during his second game of the Portsmouth Invitational. Due to this, he will have to rely on impressing teams during group workouts and throughout the summer in order to garner a selection in the draft.

Due to the success of Wisconsin while Koenig was on the roster and the clutch nature of his play, his name recognition at the very least could draw some eyes to his game and perhaps a late-second round selection.

Playing at the point guard position, Koenig has relatively good size. Based on the measurements from the Portsmouth Invitational, he stands at 6’3″ with 6’4″ wingspan. While this does not jump off the page as being elite, it also is not too small. He has the size to matchup with just about every point guard, even if he is too undersized to be a combo guard.

Koenig had very solid numbers during his college career, but his draft stock will be effected by the fact that he went through all four years of college. At 22.5 years of age, he is older than most players in this draft class and to teams, he has likely maximized his skill level.

There are very few seniors who get drafted in the first round, but as we saw with Malcolm Brogdon a season ago, second round senior can make an immediate impact in the NBA if they play well and find the right fit.

Now, let’s get into what Koenig does well and how that could translate to the NBA.

Provided by CBB at Sports Reference: View Original Table

Provided by CBB at Sports Reference: View Original Table

Strengths

The best skill in Koenig’s repertoire is his three-point shooting. In each of his last three collegiate seasons, he hovered around 40 percent from deep. Although this number does not jump off the page as being among the best shooters in this draft class, it is highly respectable and can also be taken with the fact that Koenig had to shoulder a lot of offensive production for the Badgers.

As a junior and senior, Koenig shot upwards of six three-point attempts per game and was often forced to take tough jump shots that he had to create for himself at the end of the shot clock. He was adept at doing this, but contested threes are always going to drag down some percentages.

As for how this translates to the NBA, his three-point range travels out to NBA-distance and should continue to be strong at the next level. In addition to being a spot-up shooter, Koenig is very good at executing the pull-up jumper, either in the flow of the offense or in transition. He is not overly quick in the half-court, but he changes pace well in driving to the basket and can stop on a dime to get his shot up.

If you ever need evidence that Koenig can create his own shot using the pull-up, all you would have to do is watch a clip of the Badgers taking the last buzzer-beating shot before halftime. Koenig does an excellent job baiting his defender into thinking he will attack the basket in isolation before rising up quickly for a sometimes contested mid-range or three-point jumper.

Also, as a point guard he understands how to work within the framework of an offense. Two assists per game as a senior do not look all that great as a floor general or playmaker, but Koenig knows how to make the right pass and sets the pace of a game very well.

In the Wisconsin system, he was called upon to be a focal point of the offense and executed in making sure every teammate was involved, even if it does not show up on the stat sheet. This might not translate tremendously well to the faster-paced game of the NBA, but he can be underestimated as a passer.

Weaknesses

The biggest weakness in Bronson Koenig’s game is that he is not very athletic, which has implications on both ends of the floor. He has decent size to play the point guard, but it is not elite and he can often be beaten off the dribble even when he is engaged on defense. The NBA boasts a lot of explosive guards who can attack the basket with ferocity, and Koenig might not be able to defend that.

Fundamentally, he is a decent defender, but not spectacular. Coupling that with struggles of staying in front of faster, stronger guards does not make the situation any better. However, he did play on one of the best defensive teams in the NCAA over the past few seasons at Wisconsin. This is somewhat due to the Badgers playing at a slow pace, but their team defense had a major part in it as well.

With this being said, Koenig defends well when he is off the ball. He understands positioning and knows when to step into the lane to help defend and when to sag off of his man when they are not good shooters. He plays defense instinctually, but his lack of great athleticism limits him on that end of the floor.

As for how his athleticism impacts his offensive activity, he will not be able to create his shot nearly as well at the next level in comparison to how he could in college. At Wisconsin, he often went to a pull-up jumper late in shot clocks as his “go-to move.” When executing this move, Koenig could use his solid size as a college point guard to elevate over his defender and deal with minimal contests.

Yet, at the NBA level, he is right around the average size of 6’2.75″ and will not be able to use his height as a great advantage. This could make his pull-up both contested and therefore less effective.

His lack of athleticism will also hurt him when attacking the basket, as it will be harder to get around quicker and stronger guards. For the most part, he will need to rely on taking care of the ball well and making his open shots while showing constant effort on both ends of the floor in order to secure a spot on an NBA roster.

What the Experts Say

(as of 5/20/17)

Draft Express (Jonathan Givony): NR in Top 100

ESPN (Chad Ford): NR in Top 20

CBS (Howard Megdal): NR in Top 100

Sporting News (Sam Vecenie): NR in Top 50

The Step Back (Trevor Magnotti): NR in Top 60

Behind the Buck Pass (Lukas Harkins): NR in Top 30

Quotes:

Before entering his junior season at Wisconsin, Draft Express had this to say about Koenig:

"“Though he isn’t particularly adept at creating high percentage shots around the rim, and scores a below average .882 points per shot finishing around the basket in the half court when he does find daylight, Koenig is comfortable handling pressure and uses hesitation and step back moves effectively to create space for himself to get his jump shot off in a pinch.”"

BT Powerhouse does not feel as though Koenig will be drafted this summer, but gives him an outside shot at making the league:

"“Koenig probably will not get drafted and will have to rely on an impressive Summer League stint to have any hope of snagging a spot as an 11th man somewhere.”"

Fit in Milwaukee

Having played college basketball at Wisconsin, it would not be a surprise to see the Milwaukee Bucks take a shot on Bronson Koenig. This could come either in the second round of the draft or by giving him a spot on the Summer League team. After four tremendous years with the Badgers, Koenig has become a hero for Wisconsin fans (if they don’t support Marquette, that is).

Depending on his performance throughout the offseason, the Bucks could use Koenig on either the big club or the D-League team that is entering its inaugural season. Koenig would bring some leadership to a young D-League roster and could potentially add some shooting to the backcourt for the NBA squad.

Koenig has already worked out with the Bucks, but during that time he rolled his right ankle, which prevented him from continuing his workout. Following the injury, the Journal Sentinel heard from Koenig:

"“I thought I was doing really well until I rolled my ankle a little bit,” said Koenig, who was standing with the use of crutches with a brace on his ankle. “It’s definitely frustrating, as is any injury, but I’ve been blessed my whole career to be pretty injury free.”"

With Malcolm Brogdon and Matthew Dellavedova already on the roster as point guards, Koenig would not see much floor time if he was to be acquired by the Bucks. The point guard position might be a spot of weakness for the Bucks, but it is unlikely that Koenig is going to be the future at the position in Milwaukee.

With that being said, however, he could be a valuable addition to both a Summer League roster and a D-League roster. Koenig has a lot of experience playing in big games from when he was in college and could help to develop some of the other youngsters that the Bucks have on their roster.

Next: NBA Draft 2017 Prospect Watch: Luke Kennard

All in all, it does not seem likely that Koenig will be drafted next month, but if the Bucks were to take a flyer on the in-state kid either through the draft or in the Summer League, Wisconsin fans would surely tune in.