Milwaukee Bucks Roundtable: 2018 NBA Draft decisions

Q2. Obviously we’ve had radio silence in terms of workout details throughout this year’s process, but what’s your feeling on how Jon Horst and his front office will perform with their big decisions after a full year in their current roles?

TK: Jon Horst strikes me as a person who gives a lot of attention to detail. The Bledsoe trade was good and it had a pretty interesting protection. He made a lot of end-of-the-roster moves in the regular season. Also, he kept who the Bucks worked out secret just to get a slight draft information advantage. Maybe also to work out players that wouldn’t want it to be known that they worked out for the Bucks for reasons that have to do with their own draft stock.

I think he is the type that is very likely to make a move. If he is high on someone who likely won’t fall to 17, he’ll trade up. If he likes someone who would be a reach at 17, he’ll trade down (I think this is the more likely scenario of these two). Trading out of the draft to dump Delly or Henson is always a possibility too. Either way, I do trust him. I haven’t disliked his moves so far except for the D.J. Wilson pick in a draft where he was not well-prepared.

BR: I have a feeling Horst will be less inclined to take a swing at a project in this draft class and draft a guy who can contribute sooner on a playoff team. That doesn’t mean that player couldn’t have room to grow later on down the line, but the Bucks need to surround Giannis with guys who can help him win in his prime years. After getting burned (thus far) by a “project” player last year, I think Horst could look to find a guy who’s a little more polished. I also wouldn’t be surprised if he tried to buy a second rounder, given the Bucks’ recent success there in the draft.

BS: That propaganda-like video the Bucks released last year about Jon Horst’s draft night experience has not aged well. D.J. Wilson was a questionable pick at the time and that looks even more questionable with hindsight. Realistically however, no GM will get every decision right and since selecting Wilson at 17 last season, I believe Horst has done a good job. Taking Sterling Brown at 46 and trading for Eric Bledsoe and Tyler Zeller have all been net positive moves. As such, I believe Horst has gotten his Joe Alexander pick (thanks, John Hammond) out of the way and I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt heading forward.

JT: As Horst openly remarked during his pre-draft availability Tuesday afternoon, my feeling heading into draft night is almost night and day compared to last year, which is boosted by who may end up being available by the time the Bucks are on the clock.

Perhaps that’s some wishful thinking on my part, but considering we only have D.J. to go off in his first round history as a GM, it’ll be interesting to see if we’ll have a better indication of what kind of prospect archetype Horst values through the draft, much like we did with his predecessor, John Hammond.

Without the backdrop of all the chaos that unfolded around the team last summer, this will be a big test for Horst and the staff he assembled over the last year and for our sakes, let’s hope it pans out when it’s all said and done.

WW: A well-run coaching search that played out without much drama, with Kidd now in the Bucks’ past, sets up what will hopefully be a stable offseason of advancing the Bucks to the next level. Horst has come off as smart and observant in interviews, and is positioned to add a meaningful contributor to the Bucks. Judging a GM’s drafting ability on past history is not a great measure given the hit-or-miss nature, and especially not after just one draft. Whether or not this year’s pick works out, Horst will be well-prepared to make a quality decision.

AM: I’m still somewhat unsure of what to expect from anything Horst does, but any pessimism I have heading into this draft is mostly focused on certain prospects in the Bucks’ range rather than the strategy of the front office. Horst has been saying all the right things ahead of the draft, and hopefully the benefit of a full year in the job as well as the support of a re-shaped front office staff can lead to positive results.