Milwaukee Bucks: Ruminations heading into the 2018 NBA Draft
For years and under a previous front office regime, the Milwaukee Bucks had clear, definable qualities that they prized in prospects through the NBA Draft. Can we expect the same under second-year general manager Jon Horst and Co.?
The 2018 NBA Draft now stands just days away and for the Milwaukee Bucks, it holds an added significance to add a developing prospect at a time where they won’t have much wiggle room to do much maneuvering this offseason.
That’s obviously due to the salary cap crunch they have worked themselves into over the last few summers and a complicated restricted free agency involving Jabari Parker stands as another looming hurdle that the Bucks are set to address this summer.
Of course, the fact that the Bucks hold the 17th overall pick in this year’s draft is an incredible relief as it came down to the Bucks “losing” their tiebreaker with the Miami Heat at the end of the season that kept it from being conveyed to the Phoenix Suns, who acquired a uniquely protected future first as part of the Eric Bledsoe trade last November.
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Under that context, it obviously raises the expectation and urgency for the Bucks to hit on their pick as any and all moves the team makes will be critical to the timeline that’s been set with the superstar emergence of Giannis Antetokounmpo over the last few seasons.
At the same time, the team’s recent history of first round selections rightly gives Bucks fans apprehension for various reasons of what could come five days from now.
Hopefully that will have changed with the arrival of new Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer as the development pedigree he and his staff established with the Atlanta Hawks was one of many alluring aspects in his hiring nearly a month ago.
There’s obviously much more that goes into that beyond having the right figures in place to help put the pieces together to lead more inexperienced/green players down the right path in their budding careers.
And that precisely bring us to the biggest question surrounding the Bucks now that the draft is within sight at this point in time.
For close to a decade, the Bucks were tagged with a certain player archetype they routinely valued in the first round of past drafts under former general manager John Hammond, now GM of the Orlando Magic.
Favoring prospects that possessed plenty of size, length and high amounts of athletic upside, the Bucks were prone to take big swings smack dab in the middle of the draft over Hammond’s tenure, which culminated in the biggest success of them all in Antetokounmpo.
Related Story: NBA Mock Draft 2018: Who should the Milwaukee Bucks pick at 17?
As the Bucks continue to be pegged with that calling card by fans, writers and draft pundits alike, Hammond’s departure and all the palace intrigue that ensued to name his successor obviously derailed last year’s draft process in a big way before they ultimately took D.J. Wilson with the 17th overall pick.
Further shuffling followed within the front office as the scouting department was completely overhauled and current Bucks assistant general manager Milt Newton was brought in by Horst over a month after last year’s draft.
Now as Horst oversees his second draft, this time with the inclusion of Budenholzer and various front office and scouting members, it’s fair to wonder whether the same identifiable qualities or traits the Bucks held in high esteem will carry over from Hammond to Horst.
It’s a question that we have to wait on the answer to as we only have Wilson as an example to go off of at this moment in Horst’s tenure. Additionally, the level of secrecy surrounding this year’s draft cycle can only lead to rampant draft speculation from all Bucks fans, of which this question certainly falls under.
The added factor of the Bucks feeling the pressure to win now under this window only muddles whether they’ll target a player who can contribute upon making the jump or even parlay their pick in a draft night trade could mean all cards are currently on the table.
Next: Win in 6 Podcast #226: Assessing potential front court targets in the 2018 NBA Draft
As silly season has already begun around the league, it’s about time the Bucks will enter the proceedings with the draft nearly here. For our sake, let’s just hope it doesn’t unfurl completely in for the Bucks Thursday night.