Milwaukee Bucks sign Javonte Smart to 2-way deal, waive Justin Robinson

After making a semi-notable splash yesterday, the Milwaukee Bucks are continuing to tweak the fringes of their roster. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Bucks have signed guard Javonte Smart to a two-way deal.

In needing to clear a roster spot for the move, the Bucks waived Justin Robinson, who was occupying the other two-way contract spot along with rookie Sandro Mamukelashvili. Robinson played a surprising amount for the Bucks due to injuries early in the season, getting in 17 games and playing over 11 minutes per game.

Robinson certainly looked overmatched in his minutes, but that’s to be expected for a player on a two-way contract and limited NBA experience. Still, he provided ball-handling and appeared to be well-liked by the other guys on the roster (as evidenced by their Tik Tok videos together), but he didn’t do enough on the court. So what are the Bucks getting in Javonte Smart?

Reactions to the Milwaukee Bucks signing Javonte Smart to a two-way contract

Smart is listed at 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, so there is already a clear height and weight advantage that he holds over Robinson, who was a bit undersized. The 22-year-old has yet to play an NBA game but has made an impact at both the collegiate and G League levels.

He spent three years at LSU, playing in 93 games (starting 76 of them), and averaged 16.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.3 steals over 28 games in his final collegiate season. He took a big leap in his shooting that season, shooting 40.2 percent from 3 on over six attempts per game after being roughly a 32 percent 3-point shooter in his first two seasons (around four attempts).

That has translated to his G League season so far, shooting 39.6 percent from 3 on over nine attempts per game. He’s averaging 22 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.2 steals in five games with the Sioux Falls Skyforce (the affiliate of the Miami Heat), including a massive 36-point game.

He also played in five preseason games for the Heat this season, shooting 25 percent from behind the arc, and averaged 8.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in around 18 minutes a night.

Smart profiles more as a combo guard than a point guard like Robinson. He tends to be turnover-prone and has the size and strength to guard up rather than be limited to defending point guards.

It’s more of an upside-swing for general manager Jon Horst in swapping Robinson for Smart. Although he didn’t have a ton of experience, Robinson is more NBA-ready than Smart and was a safer option if they needed him to play games.

However, Smart is a rookie and has shown he can, at the very least, light it up at the G League level already so there could be something to work with here. He’s also more likely to get in-game action than Robinson at this point due to his size. It was unlikely that the Bucks were going to play him much anymore with both Holiday and Hill available and playing well. Smart’s size will allow them to play him in some two-guard lineups as an off-ball guard in a pinch if needed.

In a vacuum, I much prefer taking shots like this with a two-way spot as opposed to a guy like Robinson at 24 years old (and don’t get me started on Axel Toupane last year). For a contending team like the Bucks, you need to find diamonds in the rough any way you can via developmental fliers such as this. Expect to see Smart with the Wisconsin Herd (who are off to a fantastic start this season) and hopefully, they can get a decent role player out of this.

Regardless, welcome to the squad, Javonte Smart and we wish Justin Robinson well. I’m going to miss his Tik Toks.