Milwaukee Bucks: Assessing Jon Horst’s performance heading into draft night
By Ben Rauman
2017 NBA Draft
With only a week to prepare for the 2017 NBA Draft after being hired, it’s hard to fault Horst much for how his first draft class has panned out so far.
D.J. Wilson
With the 17th pick in the first round, Horst went with D.J. Wilson, a 6’10” power forward who showed the ability to stretch the floor, potential to defend well and flashes of athleticism at Michigan, making him a tantalizing prospect.
However, Wilson was still a raw prospect who was viewed by most as a project. His performance in the NCAA Tournament vaulted him into first-round consideration.
In the 2017-18 season, Wilson played in just 22 games, averaging 3.2 minutes per contest. In all fairness to Wilson, he simply did not get enough opportunities to prove himself at the NBA level. Head coach Jason Kidd mostly only played him in garbage time when the game was long decided.
In the G-League, Wilson averaged 15.9 points while shooting 34 percent from deep on 4.8 attempts in 11 games with the Wisconsin Herd this year.
Wilson could certainly turn out to be a serviceable rotation player, but his inability to break into the Bucks’ rotation at a thin power forward position is somewhat concerning.
Sterling Brown
Horst went with a safer option in the second round, drafting four-year college player Sterling Brown out of SMU after trading for the 46th pick.
Projected as a three-and-D wing in the NBA, Brown showed flashes of that potential in his rookie campaign with the Bucks.
Brown shot 35.2 percent from behind the arc on 1.7 attempts per game in just 14.4 minutes per outing. He played in 54 games and earned a start on four occasions.
Brown now more than ever has the potential to build upon a respectable rookie season with the addition of coach Mike Budenholzer and his staff, who built a strong reputation in Atlanta for developing three-and-D wing prospects.
Grade: B-