Milwaukee Bucks fans would love to see Kingston Flemings in green. The toolsy point guard has been growing in popularity as a potential Bucks draft target at 10th overall. A freshman at Houston last season, Flemings established himself as a dynamic playmaker with All-Star upside or better. Yeah, the Bucks could use that.Â
While he measured poorly at the NBA Draft Combine, his athletic ability shone through. Unfortunately for the Bucks, there's a catch. Of course there is. Every other team's scouts saw the same thing: Flemings' explosive burst, his lateral quickness, and his pace-pushing sprint speed. If anything, he might now be a less realistic Milwaukee target than before.
Flemings' athleticism makes him elite prospect despite size misgivings
A projected top six or seven pick, Flemings put the full scope of his abilities on display for the Cougars last season. The confident floor general averaged 16.2 points and 5.2 assists on 47.6 shooting. Despite size concerns, he clawed his way to 4.1 rebounds and 1.5 steals. His 3-point shot can appear awkward, but he converted from long range at a 38.7 percent clip.
Flemings also turned it over only 1.8 times per game, a promising sign for a young point guard.Â
In his case, those size concerns might be overblown. Flemings measured only 6-foot-2-and-a-half barefoot at the combine, with a 6-foot-3-and-a-half wingspan. He clocked in at 183 pounds. But he also has outlandish athletic traits to make up for it - the combine made that much obvious - and the chance to add both height and bulk to his frame. He is, after all, just 19 years old.
Aided by a high basketball IQ, Flemings' defensive upside is deceptively high for a guard of his size. Writes FanSided draft expert Christopher Kline, "Just on a technical level, Flemings is far and away the best defender of this mid-lottery guard run. He times his rotations and is able to get vertical without fouling."
Combined with his Ja Morant-like ability to pressure the rim, no wonder Flemings has only seen his stock rise since the combine.
Flemings remains out of range for Bucks at their current draft position
That sentiment is likely shared by multiple general managers in the lottery, not just Milwaukee's Jon Horst. The Bucks did not confirm a visit with Flemings at the combine, but then, he opted not to reveal which teams he did or didn't meet with. It's easy to imagine that they would be interested.Â
If the Bucks were hoping he'd somehow sneak by the teams ahead of them, they had better think again. Sure, he's smaller, but he has the tools to cancel out the drawbacks that typically accompany that label. When he's jumping out of the gym and looks like a transition demon at the point, GMs won't care that he came in an inch-and-a-half and seven pounds below his listed measurements. Â
Flemings was not talked about all that much as a Bucks prospect earlier in the pre-draft cycle. That's typically how this works. A prospect turns heads and suddenly becomes a talking point for any team in striking distance.
Something similar happened with Arkansas guard Darius Acuff, a one-time Bucks mock pick, after he erupted down the stretch. The same evidence that made Acuff a red-hot Milwaukee target carried him out of range altogether. Now he might be a top five selection.
It's a predictable pattern, but that won't make it less disappointing when Flemings goes in the top seven on draft night. If the Bucks really want him, they'll have to move up.Â
Add us as a preferred source on Google