Milwaukee Bucks: Donte DiVincenzo needs to deliver positives offensively

As he looks to be a big piece within the Milwaukee Bucks’ rotation over his sophomore campaign, Donte DiVincenzo will have to hone his offensive consistency throughout the 2019-20 season.

Ahead of his second NBA season, Milwaukee Bucks combo guard Donte DiVincenzo is simply looking to lay the foundation to a successful, lasting career.

The 22-year-old was robbed of that opportunity over his rookie campaign last year as injuries limited DiVincenzo to making jutst 27 regular season appearances and four assignments with the Bucks’ G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd, before being ruled out for the year in late March due to bilateral heel bursitis.

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With his injury struggles now past him, DiVincenzo is looking to establish himself within a deep Bucks roster that is poised to pursue their title aspirations over the course of the 2019-20 season.

However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t holes in DiVincenzo’s game that require some ironing out on his part in order to be a fixture in Milwaukee’s foundation.

And the reality of the situation is that DiVincenzo’s has some work to do in order to realize his offensive potential, consistency, and overall fit within the Bucks’ system to earn regular minutes with the big club all throughout the year.

That was the case throughout DiVincenzo’s inconsistent run during the Bucks’ undefeated preseason, one in which the Delaware native played different roles and even filled some minutes as the backup point guard in light of Eric Bledsoe‘s rib injury. Over his five preseason appearances, DiVincenzo averaged 10 points on 18-of-47 shooting from the field (38.3 percent), 5-of-22 from downtown (22.7 percent), 4.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists in his 20.8 minutes per contest.

Obviously, DiVincenzo’ shooting inconsistencies loom as the biggest hurdle he has yet to clear to fulfill his complementary role alongside some of the driving forces like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton that pull the strings of their system on a nightly basis.

The combination of DiVincenzo’s ineffectiveness hitting three-point shots and occasional struggles finishing at the rim won’t cut it, considering the majority of the shots the Bucks attempt come at those spots on the floor (though, DiVincenzo finished 58.8 percent of his 17 attempts from the restricted area this preseason, per NBA.com/stats).

What could be more worrisome in terms of what will be DiVincenzo’s role immediately for this Bucks team is the concerns over his ability to lead the offense consistently for stretches. DiVincenzo flashed his playmaking potential and vision over his minutes throughout the preseason, but the 2.6 turnovers per game and 1.00 assist-to-turnover ratio are big stumbling blocks that limit how much the Villanova product can be relied on in such a role.

And with a fierce battle for consistent minutes on the wing with a rotating cast between veterans such as Kyle Korver and Wes Matthews, as well as developing players like Sterling Brown and Pat Connaughton, DiVincenzo will have to provide stable production in order to stand out beyond the athleticism and competitiveness he brings every time he hits the floor this season.

That will stand as the crux, headlining issue that hangs over DiVincenzo’s sophomore season, especially as we’ve seen that his surprisingly sturdy work on the defensive end has been, and can be, a real asset to both him and the Bucks as a whole.

Without marked improvements and some semblance of offensive consistency as the year wears on, it’ll only makes it that much harder for DiVincenzo to make his mark on a Bucks team that is counting on him and his services ahead of a crucial campaign.