Milwaukee Bucks Mock Draft Roundup: One month out from 2020 NBA Draft

Milwaukee Bucks Mock Draft Roundup: Who does Sports Illustrated have the Bucks taking?

With the 24th overall pick, Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated has the Bucks selecting Maryland sophomore, big Jalen Smith.

This is certainly going against the grain from the number of backcourt players we’ve seen linked to the Bucks in various mock drafts, but Woo highlighted on Smith’s size, physical tools and ability to space the floor as reasons why he’d be a solid fit within the Bucks’ foundation:

"“Still a fairly divisive prospect due to his pronounced strengths and weaknesses, Smith would be a good fit in a Milwaukee scheme that can deploy him as a floor spacer and use his length on defense. The Bucks may need to change some things up going into next season, but stretch bigs are a necessity for their style of play, and Smith is one of the better shooters in this crop.”"

From that standpoint, Smith does possess the requisite qualities to develop and find his place within Milwaukee’s system, given how they have developed frontcourt players in the Mike Budenholzer era. For example, Smith having shot 36.8 percent on his 87 threes last season is a good touch for projecting his fit in the Bucks’ five-out system,

On the other hand, Woo’s notes about Smith’s stiffness and lack of quick-twitch reactions and athleticism poses a big question for his defensive standing at the next level. Could those limitations be smoothed over in Milwaukee and their drop-back defensive scheme?

If you’re curious about Smith’s game, you can learn more about him here.