Milwaukee Bucks: 3 takeaways from Summer League win vs. LA Clippers

Mamadi Diakite was the most impressive overall player for the Milwaukee Bucks

While the focus was primarily on Jordan Nwora and Sandro Mamukelashvili, Mamadi Diakite turned out the most impressive performance at both ends of the floor. He finished with a solid 13 points, three rebounds, two assists, one block, and was +11. Like most of the Bucks, he struggled shooting the ball, going 5-for-14 and 1-for-5 from 3.

Beyond the stat line, Diakite showed some diversity in his offensive game. He opened with a jab-step jumper, followed that with a drive to the basket, and finished with a hook shot, then converted a catch-and-shoot 3 as the trailer. He was also able to get loose for some dunks in the half court, and really showed his diverse offensive skill set as a scorer.

Defensively, Diakite was only credited with one block, but he also had a couple called back for goaltending. Obviously, goaltends aren’t impressive, but he showed flashes as a rim protector, and that’s what’s most important in these games.

The 24-year-old also did a lot of little things very well. He set solid screens, rolled hard to the basket, and defended well on the perimeter when switched. The Bucks actually did quite a lot of switching 1-through-5 in this one, and both bigs held up fairly well.

Seeing as the Bucks are a little light on big men after Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis, there could be a chance for Diakite to earn some regular season minutes if there’s an injury (knock on wood) or one of them gets into early foul trouble. He’s not an NBA-ready big yet, but there are some intriguing skills that can be developed to the point where he can become a good rotational modern big.