Jon Horst and the Milwaukee Bucks did it again. Just when it seemed like Milwaukee would finally go an entire NBA Draft without making a trade, they swooped in. The Bucks traded up for the 58th pick, which ended up being the final pick of the NBA Draft due to Miami and Milwaukee both losing picks due to tampering violations. With the final pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, the team selected Hugo Besson.
Reactions to Milwaukee Bucks selecting Hugo Besson with the last pick in the 2022 NBA Draft
Besson is yet another shooter for the Bucks to surround Giannis Antetokounmpo with. The Bucks have relentlessly pursued shooters to place around Antetokounmpo in recent years, and the selection of Besson is no different.
Besson is a shooter that has the ability to get hot in a hurry. When his shot is on, it’s really on. He’s also not shy about firing from anywhere at any time.
Even though he has incredible shooting stretches, the worry with Besson would have to be that he’s a wildly inconsistent shooter. Most of the time, Besson’s shot is a hit-or-miss. Well, of course it is because you either make it or you miss it, but you know what I mean. When Besson is cold, he becomes really cold. Being cold from the three-point line would be a huge part of what did Milwaukee in during the 2022 postseason, so you’d like for that to improve as he comes to the next level.
If you look only at his percentages, you’d probably think that there’s no shooting ability there at all for Besson. During his 2021-2022 season with the New Zealand Breakers, he shot only 30.6 percent from beyond the arc. He’s also had three other seasons where he’s shot below 30 percent from the outside, so that might be a turn off for some people.
A factor that could play into his low percentages sometimes is his own versatility. He has the ability to take shots off the dribble, while stepping back, and in catch and shoot situations. He might try to force shots at times because he knows that he’s capable of shooting from anywhere.
Much of those percentages have more to do with his inconsistency than the fact that he can’t shoot. He’s fully capable of erupting for large scoring bursts at any time. We’ve seen something similar the last couple of years in Milwaukee out of Jordan Nwora, who is either frustratingly inconsistent, or playing like a player that I like to call Michael Jordan Nwora.
Unfortunately for Bucks fans, it doesn’t appear as if we’ll get to see Besson play right away. According to Eric Nehm of The Athletic, Milwaukee is planning on using Besson as a draft-and-stash player and we likely won’t see him during the 2022-2023 season.
No matter when Besson arrives, he is a pick that has a lot of potential for the Bucks. If he’s able to develop a consistent three-point stroke, he could be a sharpshooter of the future and the pick will receive a great grade for Milwaukee.
Stay tuned to see what undrafted players Milwaukee will bring in for the Summer League.