Milwaukee Bucks: 3 ways for their offense to improve internally
Milwaukee Bucks: 3 ways for their offense to improve internally – 3-point shooting consistency
Letting it fly has been one of the many key components for the Bucks under the Mike Budenholzer era.
There’s no question that whatever decisions the Bucks make this offseason will ultimately lead to any meaningful improvements next season, but the building blocks they have in place does uphold the spacing the Bucks have valued around Antetokounmpo especially.
Yet, for all of the spacing the Bucks have constructed under Budenholzer and co. and how they stand near the top of the pack in terms of launching 3-point looks, their efficiency on such shots is merely average. In each of the last two seasons, the Bucks have collectively shot 35.3 percent from long distance.
This year, the Bucks had the good fortune of George Hill being the league leader in 3-point percentage while Khris Middleton shot a career-high 41.5 percent from three and generally flirted with a 50-40-90 season. On the other end, it took until reaching the bubble for Brook Lopez to break out of his season-long shooting slump, though his resurgence did little to affect the ultimate outcome of the Bucks’ season.
On the more unproven side, Donte DiVincenzo has signficiant strides to make after seeing his 3-point shots fall in fits and starts throughout his sophomore season. And to expect both Antetokounmpo and Bledsoe to be more than passable shooting threats in the eyes of the opposition will be a struggle the Bucks have to deal with now and in the future.
Again, any improvements the Bucks seek to increase their 3-point efficiency this offseason will largely depend on who they bring through the draft, free agency and trade. The return of Wesley Matthews will help in that regard, but his streakiness shooting the ball has been well-documented after just wrapping up his first Bucks campaign.
Being on the leading edge of letting it fly as the Bucks have done can only manufacture so much when their total 3-point efficiency has been middle of the road over the last two seasons. And as The Athletic’s Sam Amick and Eric Nehm ($$) reported on last month, the organization was concerned with their shooting performances during the playoffs, specifically that Heat series.
It’s now time to see that get a much-needed boost going into next year.