Milwaukee Bucks: Can new two-way player Trevon Duval improve as a shooter?

The Milwaukee Bucks have obviously embraced the challenge of developing wo-way player Trevon Duval, but can the undrafted rookie improve upon one of, if not his greatest weakness in his jumpshot?

Throughout an offseason in which they have prioritized perimeter shooting and spacing the floor for superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, one addition the Milwaukee Bucks made official midway through last week ran counter to that exact need.

By bringing in Trevon Duval on a two-way contract, the Bucks have minted a unique flyer that affords them the opportunity to develop a raw, unfinished prospect, but one that has shined athletically throughout his time within the amateur ranks.

Of course, it’s hard to foresee Duval garnering any sort of significant run on the NBA level next year unless if injury forces the Bucks’ hand to lean on the 19-year-old for limited minutes. With that, that leaves the majority of Duval’s development and game reps to come with the Wisconsin Herd under second-year head coach Jordan Brady.

Much has obviously been made about the wayward path the undrafted one-and-done guard from Duke University has taken and how much it affected his introduction to the NBA, which opened up the door for the Bucks to come in and add him into the organization for at least the next year.

A good chunk of that can be attributed to how Duval’s lone year in Durham went where he took a backseat to the likes of lottery talents like Marvin Bagley and Wendell Carter Jr., a trend that would have continued had he stayed for his sophomore season with the next wave of premier draft prospects rolling through for the Blue Devils.

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On the other hand, several elements of Duval’s game remain underdeveloped at this stage, which obviously hampered his effectiveness on the college level under the brightest of spotlights.

Atop of that list for Duval is obviously lacking a capable and consistent jumper to make him a sufficient scoring threat beyond attacking the rim in order to further fill out his offensive game.

That bore out during his time with the Blue Devils, which can be seen in his three-point percentage (29 percent on 107 attempts), his subpar free throw shooting (59.6 percent on 89 attempts) and his mid-range marksmanship (a combined 30 for 74, which comes in at 40.5 percent, per Will Schreefer’s shot chart tool over at The Stepien).

Additionally, this Synergy Sports scouting report written before the draft on Duval relayed that he tallied 0.86 points per possession last season when attempting a jump shot in half court situations.

All of that paints a picture of a shot that is in dire need of major recalibration on the next level. The question now worth asking, especially now that he’s been added to the organization, is how much work can be done in a year’s time on both the NBA and G League level to help elevate Duval to at minimum, non-shooter status.

Even as Duval honed in on that concern throughout the pre-draft process and the individual workouts he held, like the one seen above via Shot Mechanics, major strides are still needed due to how mechanical and hitchy his shot looks at times.

Mind you, I don’t profess to be a shot doctor (though, I do like to play one on television), but given how some college teams game planned for his shooting deficiencies, it’s safe to assume that Duval could see a similar treatment or will have to put in major work to gain some level of respect as a shooter from opposing defenders on both levels.

Considering the up tempo nature of the G League, there are certainly ways for Duval to unleash his scoring talents in a setting that’s more suited to his athletic strongsuits and under NBA-level spacing than he experienced during his time at Duke.

That requires a bunch of patience on the part of Brady and his staff in Oshkosh to entrust a first-year pro, let alone a 19-year-old, to carve out his own path knowing the various ups and downs that will surely surface along the way.

Then again, that’s exactly what the Bucks have signed up for and seeing the low level of risk involved, the reward for bringing along a player as rawly gifted as Duval could be great for the team down the line.

But all of that won’t be realized without displaying improvements on Duval’s part and without gradually sporting a functioning jump shot in his arsenal, his NBA future will be far less brighter than was once imagined not that long ago.