The Giannis Antetokounmpo era has given the Milwaukee Bucks and their fans plenty to smile about over the past eight years.
After all, Antetokounmpo’s rapid ascension to superstardom has helped the franchise return to relevancy after years of mediocrity. There was also some chatter that the Bucks could have been relocated to a different market right around the time that the organization selected him with the 15th pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, and he certainly helped keep them in Milwaukee. It goes without saying that Antetokounmpo was a slam dunk pick for the Bucks.
However, in the years following that selection, the team has not had much luck when it comes to drafting players, particularly in the first round. Only one player that they have selected since then remains on the roster, which is crazy to think about. With all that being said, let us look back and grade the first round picks made by the Bucks from 2014 to the present day.
Grading the Milwaukee Bucks’ first round picks: Jabari Parker, 2014
Considering how his early career transpired, Jabari Parker is a challenging player to grade for the Bucks. Following their abysmal 15-67 season in 2013-14, they selected Parker with the second overall selection in the 2014 NBA Draft, a move that had potential. Although Antetokounmpo was coming off a solid rookie season the year before, many initially believed that it would be Parker to help the Bucks leap back into contention.
Ultimately, he looked the part at times, but he was consistently plagued by injuries, most notably by tearing his ACL on two separate occasions. These injuries would limit him to just 190 games in his four seasons. After four years with the team, Parker signed with his hometown Chicago Bulls and has since bounced around the league as he is still trying to find his footing to this day.
It is truly unfortunate that Parker’s career took such a drastic turn as all signs pointed to big things for him in Milwaukee. Had Parker stayed healthy, who knows how everything might have looked for the Bucks today? He would have certainly helped form a lethal trio alongside Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton. All in all, this was not a bad pick by the Bucks, it was just the injuries took an unfortunate turn on Parker’s career and held him back from truly blossoming into the star he was destined to become in Milwaukee. For that, the Bucks cannot be held at too much fault.
Parker was always a solid player for the Bucks, he could just rarely stay healthy enough to show it.