Milwaukee Bucks: What role will Donte DiVincenzo fill?

With the Milwaukee Bucks drafting Villanova guard Donte DiVincenzo with the 17th overall pick in last week’s draft, in what role can the Bucks best utilize him to fit their needs?

With opportunities to upgrade their roster in a number of areas on draft night, the Bucks went with Donte DiVincenzo, a 6’5” combo guard known for his three-point prowess.

When asked about what he was looking for in their pick prior to the draft, general manager Jon Horst emphasized targeting a player who could help the team right away as a rookie rather than a project:

"“Most important to me, I think like a home run pick for us would be a player that can impact our team this year as a rookie, and that’s a hard thing to find at 17. But if we could find someone who can do that, that also has the ability to get better throughout their rookie contract, and then hopefully have a long career with the Bucks, that would be a home run.What skills? Shooting would help us. Defensive toughness and rebounding would help us. Guys that have positional size will help us.”"

The Bucks welcomed Donte DiVincenzo to Milwaukee in an introductory press conference held Monday morning.

Horst backed up what he said prior to the draft when elaborating on what they saw in DiVincenzo:

"“Obviously on the floor, the skill-set he has. He can pass, handle and shoot. He’s a very good athlete. He has positional size, and he’s a great competitor as [Coach] Bud has mentioned.”"

The Bucks certainly got shooting with DiVincenzo.

According to Synergy, he shot 36.7 percent from NBA three-point range and 41 percent from college range. He also proved he was a pretty good finisher at the rim in college, shooting 60.8 percent from inside seven feet while attempting nearly a third of his shots from that range.

He has a quick, smooth release and showed the ability to shoot both off-the-dribble and off-the-ball, however his off-the-ball percentages were slightly less impressive.

Potential point guard role

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What’s interesting is when Horst mentions DiVincenzo’s favorable positional size. Looking at DiVincenzo as a prospect, many projected him as more of a shooting guard. At 6’5”, DiVincenzo measures a bit undersized for the modern NBA shooting guard position.

However, DiVincenzo would certainly have favorable positional size for an NBA point guard.

DiVincenzo’s ballhandling could use some work, but he was an underrated playmaker in pick-and-roll situations, converting 1.106 points per possession as a pick-and-roll ball-handler. That ranks him in the 97th percentile of ball-handlers in those type of possessions.

A 1.76 assist-to-turnover ratio is certainly not ideal, but good coaching and a role with less pressure on him to force things offensively should improve that moving forward.

With good foot speed, DiVincenzo could certainly push the pace and create transition opportunities for the Bucks’ fast break specialists like Giannis Antetokoumpo, Jabari Parker, and Eric Bledsoe.

With only a 6’6” wingspan, DiVincenzo’s defensive tools are limited, though he plays with high energy and is certainly a willing defensive player. The Bucks will have to bank on him channeling his inner Matthew Dellavedova defensively, though his athleticism should certainly help him make up for his other defensive shortcomings.

Long Term Role

Evidently, Horst and Budenholzer believe good coaching can unlock further playmaking abilities in DiVincenzo and develop him into a reliable point guard option off the bench.

While his ball-handling and distribution skills are not top tier, they are skills that can be coached. With a ball-dominant superstar like Giannis on the team, there should be less pressure on DiVincenzo to create and more freedom for him to do the things he does well.

The Bucks were rumored to be shopping point guards Eric Bledsoe and Matthew Dellavedova on draft night, which could further support the theory that the Bucks believe they’ve found an ideal fit at point guard next to Giannis long term.

When asked what he believed his role could be with the team, DiVincenzo answered:

"“I don’t know. Honestly, I think they can just put me anywhere on the court and give me a role to do. Knock down shots, rebound, defend; just do a lot of the little things just to get started and get my feet wet. Then once I establish myself, my role will grow.”"

Only time will tell how Donte DiVincenzo’s role could shake out with the Bucks next season and beyond, but he looks like he can at least come in and contribute at some level off the bench in his rookie year.

Focusing on doing the little things to help his team win will certainly factor into an expanded role for him.

Next: Milwaukee Bucks: Getting to know 17th overall pick, Donte DiVincenzo

It will be interesting to see if his skill-set can provide a boost to the Bucks bench this season and if he fits with the core pieces the Bucks already have long term.