Thus far, the Milwaukee Bucks' trade for Kyle Kuzma has been a mixed bag.
The forward has flashed signs of excellence, primarily on the defensive end, while showing at times that he can fit in offensively. However, there have also been quite a few missteps on both ends here and there. Lately, the bad has outweighed the good, and it mainly has come from his production on the offensive end.
Over his last three games, Kuzma has averaged 7.7 points while shooting 32.3 percent from the floor and 23.1 percent from the 3-point line. The Milwaukee Bucks knew they weren't acquiring an efficient three-level scorer when they traded for the forward, but even these numbers are far below what the standard should be.
Kyle Kuzma's offensive production has nosedived for the Bucks lately
In this small stretch, Kuzma has basically been a non-factor in Milwaukee. In fact, in Milwaukee's most recent game against the Thunder, a contest he shot just 4-of-11 in, OKC basically left Kuzma open on offense and dared him to shoot. Given the end result and his shooting percentage, that worked out in their favor. If Kuzma cannot get himself into a groove, other teams will use this same strategy.
Looking closer at the numbers, it's not too surprising that he's shooting 3-of-13 (23.1 percent) from deep, even if he's typically a bit better than that, as he's never been an outside shooter. Instead, the major problem comes from him shooting 5-of-9 in the restricted area and a mere 1-of-7 in the paint outside of the restricted area.
He's getting close to the hoop, but he's failing to connect on those shots, ensuring empty offensive possessions pile up. Given how much Milwaukee's offense has been struggling lately, this issue has been a plague.
On paper, it sounds easy, but Kuzma simply has to start making some of these shots. It would be a nice boost if he could hit some triples, especially considering he's shot 1-of-6 (16.7 percent) on his "open" triples and 2-of-6 (33.3 percent) on his "wide open" 3-point tries during this stretch, but the main source of production should come from close to the hoop.
There's less leniency on that than the 3-point misses.
The Milwaukee Bucks never expected Kuzma to be a 50-40-90 guy, and they likely knew his recent stretch of efficiency would quiet down sooner or later. They don't need him to knock down his triples like he's Gary Trent Jr., but if he can keep defenses on their toes by connecting on shots down low, it could do a lot for this inconsistent Milwaukee offense.
Kyle Kuzma might not end up being the third scorer for this team like many initially envisioned, but he still has the chops to be a solid contributor if he's making shots. The Milwaukee Bucks need him to hit a lot more than he has been lately.
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