The Milwaukee Bucks do not have a winning draft record in recent years. Preseason roster cuts only reinforced that reality. Now, Wizards forward Kyshawn George is serving up a painful reminder of what could have been.
Breaking out in his sophomore season, George was on the board with the Bucks on the clock in the 2024 draft. Instead, they chose AJ Johnson. Flash forward, and the Wizards have both players. It sure looks like Jon Horst whiffed again, possibly by taking Johnson and definitely by passing on George.
Bucks missed out on a budding star
Nine games in, the 6-foot-8 forward is averaging 16 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.9 assists. His averages remain high despite George dealing with an illness and putting up quieter numbers in his last few games. He is shooting 51.5 percent from the field and 47.9 percent from beyond the arc. Throw in a steal and a block per game. His 34-point double-double against the Mavericks was one of the best all-around performances of the season. George is the playmaking wing the Bucks covet.
They could have had him. With the 23rd pick in 2024, however, Milwaukee chose Johnson over George, whom the Wizards snatched up with the very next pick. Last trade deadline, the Bucks packaged Johnson in the Kyle Kuzma trade.
Kuzma has actually impressed this season. Turning Johnson into Kuzma isn't necessarily a bad exchange. George, however, has flashed All-Star potential. What would the Bucks give to have him in Kuzma's place?
Of course, it's fair to ask whether things would be any different if the Bucks had indeed taken George. On a tanking Wizards team, he has had the room he needs to get his feet wet, make mistakes, and ultimately spread his wings. That opportunity did not exist in Milwaukee last season, a factor that kept Johnson planted on the bench.
Despite George's breakout start to 2025-26, he did not put up good rookie numbers. His chances on the Bucks would have been limited by a 37.2 field goal percentage and chaotic play. He wouldn't sniff the 68 games (38 starts) he played for the Wizards last year, logging 26.5 minutes per night.
Very possibly, though, George would have gotten more burn than Johnson. Even last season he flashed playmaking promise, something the Bucks could have used more of off the bench. By on-off rating, the Wizards fared better on both sides of the ball with George on the floor.
Even if he didn't play much and the Bucks ended up trading him as well, if George got any chance to show his stuff, either in Milwaukee or in the G League, there is a good chance teams would look at him as a more valuable asset than Johnson on the basis of raw talent. After getting minutes down the stretch for the Wizards last season, Johnson has barely played this year.
At the very least, offering George in his place could have gotten the Bucks an upgrade over Kuzma in a trade. Alternatively, they could hold onto George and make the same deal by offering Tyler Smith - their other pick from '24 - instead of simply cutting him ahead of this season.
More optimistically, if George showed enough for the Bucks to keep him, he could be on his way to a Ryan-Rollins-like rise in Milwaukee. Unfortunately, they'll never know.