Capping off his collegiate career in style with a NCAA championship as well as a breakout performance throughout this year’s tournament, Villanova guard Donte DiVincenzo has officially declared for the 2018 NBA Draft.
Following his sterling run in this year’s NCAA Tournament, which was punctuated by his 31-point performance in this year’s title game against the University of Michigan, Villanova redshirt sophomore Donte DiVincenzo has officially declared for the 2018 NBA Draft.
While he had declared for the draft in mid-April, DiVincenzo didn’t follow through with hiring an agent at that time, keeping his college eligibility intact for the time being.
But for nearly the next month and a half, DiVincenzo’s tough decision to either return back to school for his junior season or enter the NBA may have been the most high profile of underclassmen, considering his meteoric rise in March and the year overall.
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An incredibly strong showing at this year’s NBA Draft Combine only seemed to further complicate the Delaware native’s crossroads moment as he came away as one of the biggest winners at the event.
Finally, with the draft’s early entry deadline looming this week, DiVincenzo himself announced that he would be keeping his name in the draft on Tuesday night, drawing a close to his illustrious three years at Villanova.
So without further ado, let’s break down Donte DiVincenzo’s game on both ends of the spectrum, see how draft experts rate him at this point in the process and evaluate his potential fit with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Strengths
At the very least, DiVincenzo projects to be a spark plug, considering his array for scoring proficiently at all levels of the floor.
The 21-year-old is a knockdown three-point shooter, who’s capable of firing off of catch-and-shoot situations and is already accustomed to extending his range to the NBA three-point line. Over his sophomore and junior seasons, DiVincenzo drained 122 of his 327 attempts from three-point range (37.3 percent).
Beyond that, though, DiVincenzo is a strong finisher at the rim, thanks to his high level athleticism and deft touch with both hands. This last season, DiVincenzo finished 60 of his 90 attempts at the basket, per Will Schreefer of The Stepien.
As it relates to creating his own shot, DiVincenzo possesses an effective in between game, especially whenever he’s run off the line. That also extends in DiVincenzo’s ability to make plays for others as he improved on his assist total year over year and boasts a budding vision to initiate sets as a lead ball-handler for stretches.
Lastly, DiVincenzo is a willing and effective rebounder, especially on the defensive end as he tallied a 13.2 defensive rebounding percentage over his time on the collegiate level.
Weaknesses
While he possesses a gritty nature and is more than willing to make an impact in other areas of the game, DiVincenzo’s stylings on the defensive end could use some improvement.
Some of that is due to DiVincenzo’s physical profile, as he’s armed with a 6’6″ wingspan (mind you, he tops out at 6’5″) and has trouble staying in front of opposing guards who are quicker than him at this stage.
No one can fault the now-former Wildcat for competing the way he does on that end of the floor, but as it stands, DiVincenzo’s defensive deficiencies will likely prevent him from becoming a starting-caliber player on the next level.
Additionally, there are some questions over DiVincenzo’s scoring consistency, which may be highlighted by the type of role he was asked to play over his time in the Quaker State.
What the experts say
(as of 5/31/18)
ESPN (Jonathan Givony): 28th
The Ringer (Kevin O’Connor, Jonathan Tjarks, Danny Chau): 29th
Sports Illustrated (Jeremy Woo): 20th
Sporting News (Chris Stone): N/A
The Athletic (Sam Vecenie): 31st
The Stepien (Composite Rank): 54th
The Step Back (Brandon Kleen): N/A
Quotes:
With his decision to stay in this year’s draft coming before Wednesday night’s early entry deadline, The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie wrote about the fork in the road-like decision DiVincenzo was wrestling with and why he believes he rightly chose the correct route:
"“This was always the most likely move after DiVincenzo’s Most Outstanding Player performance in the Final Four. Though it’s happening a bit faster than anticipated, don’t get it twisted: DiVincenzo has been on NBA radars since the 2016-17 season and likely would have gone through this process even without the remarkable performance in the title game against Michigan. DiVincenzo has impressed folks across the NBA throughout the predraft process with his toughness, athleticism, motor and complete lack of fear. He was one of the major standouts of the combine’s 5-on-5 session, and that impressive play has extended into his time at NBA team facilities in workouts for them. He will certainly be at least a top-40 pick and likely will hear his name called in the 20-30 range. Villanova is great and would have put him in a terrific position to succeed next year. In my opinion, if he had returned, he would have been the favorite for national player of the year. Really, it was a choice of a terrific option and an even better option. I think DiVincenzo chose correctly, as he’ll get to the NBA earlier and get closer to free agency quicker.”"
Also stating that DiVincenzo’s range is seemingly set late in the first round, Jeremy Woo over at Sports Illustrated assessed the Delaware native’s game in his latest Big Board:
"“After breaking out at the Final Four, DiVincenzo turned in two strong days at the draft combine and likely turned himself into a first-round pick in the process. A high-flying leaper and tough combo guard who makes winning plays, he has the size and athletic ability to defend both backcourt spots. He excels playing the passing lanes and making plays in transition. Though a streaky scorer, DiVincenzo shoots it well enough to provide spacing and can provide a legitimate boost when his jumper is falling. To play on the ball more often and better facilitate offense, his handle must improve. Overall, he fits many of key criteria required of a solid role player, and appears set to fall into the 20–30 range.”"
Fit with the Bucks
While his draft stock has risen considerably throughout this process, all signs point to DiVincenzo being on the board by the time the Bucks are on the clock at 17.
Whether they’ll consider him at that spot is the question many Bucks fans have to be asking themselves at this stage in the game and especially after taking into account the number of areas he’d help address.
Adding a player of DiVincenzo’s various offensive capabilities would do wonders for a Bucks team that needs to broaden their offensive repertoire and improve upon their potency from three-point range under new head coach Mike Budenholzer.
The pros regarding potentially taking DiVincenzo go beyond his production as his drive and high work ethic are characteristics that any NBA team, much less the Bucks, covet highly when weighing a decision of this nature.
Of course, that would also mean having to reconcile with the fact that DiVincenzo’s defensive shortcomings will always loom over his game until he proves otherwise, that is if he ever does.
As we’ve talked about repeatedly throughout past draft profiles, the margin for error is dwindling when it comes to the Bucks walking the tightrope of trying to find an instant contributor or rolling the dice on a prospect that may lean on the rawer side, but possesses plenty of untapped potential. Ideally, you’d hope for the best of both worlds but at 17, that’s far from guaranteed at that point in the draft.
Next: NBA Draft 2018 Prospect Watch: Elie Okobo
If, and it’s a big one at that, the Bucks decide to go down the safer route and target a prospect who can help right away with the window they’re under, this may not be the last time we talk about DiVincenzo’s fit with the Bucks.