Milwaukee Bucks: 5 goals for Eric Bledsoe in 2018-19 season
Have a career year from three
This may stand as overly ambitious, but with the three-point revolution the Bucks are undergoing under Budenholzer and his staff, Bledsoe’s ability to knock down three-pointers will be paramount to any success they wish to earn on that side of the floor this year.
On the whole, Bledsoe’s three-point percentage during his first year with the Bucks fell firmly in line with his past efficiencies from that level of the floor as he connected on 34.9 percent of the 347 attempts he put up last year in Milwaukee.
That falls below the best three-point shooting season he’s experienced to this point in his career, which came during 2012-13 season (Bledsoe hit 39.7 percent on 78 attempts from downtown in that campaign).
With that said, the volume Bledsoe sported that year greatly differs to the amount of threes he now launches and the role he played in what ended up being his last season with the Los Angeles Clippers are two big caveats that can’t be ignored. So what or how exactly could Bledsoe experience a big jump in that facet of his game this season?
Cutting out pull up three-point looks could go a long way to boosting his potency from that range, considering the discrepancy Bledsoe sported in those situations compared to his proficiency when shooting triples in catch-and-shoot situations (Bledsoe shot 26.5 percent off the dribble from three versus 39 percent off the catch, per NBA.com/stats).
With the increased ball and player movement we’ve seen so far under Budenholzer’s offensive system, Bledsoe won’t have to have the same reliance on being able to create the same level of three-point looks on his own. Not only that, but he’ll likely have more attempts from more advantageous spots from beyond the three-point line.
Whether those adjustments will take some shape over the year is anyone’s guess at this point, but here’s hoping to that being the case.