The Bucks are expected to have a very disappointing and unexciting roster next season, but they boast one luxury that few other teams can claim: a legitimate 7-foot sniper. Among players listed at 7 feet tall or higher, incoming center Kel’el Ware led the NBA in three-point percentage last season at 39.5%. His ability to space the floor at his height should give the Bucks an unexpected edge and open a new dimension to their offense.
Kel’el Ware will be the Bucks’ secret weapon
In Milwaukee, Ware should get even more opportunity to display his expanding offensive skillset than he did in Miami. The Bucks are in full rebuild mode and should do everything in their power to feature Ware in a bigger role. Between his insane athleticism to finish jaw-dropping alley-oops and the lethal outside shot, Ware could fit into a rare mold of inside-out threat.
As the Bucks enter their rebuild, they will undoubtedly continue to pursue other young talent around the league. But their existing young core is being largely overlooked, and Ware’s skillset could help them surprise a lot of people in coming years. If he continues to develop on offense with more reps, he’ll be able to draw a ton of defensive attention and make life easier for his teammates.
Opposing centers will be pulled all the way out to the 3-point line to contest his jumpers, creating better driving lanes for guys like Ryan Rollins and Brayden Burries. The next step for Ware will be developing more go-to moves against mismatches, in the event that teams switch a smaller player onto him. But his handle is already surprisingly fluid for his size and his self-creation ability should only get better.
Ware is already a top stretch big in the NBA
When the term “stretch 5” gets mentioned, higher-profile names like Karl-Anthony Towns or Victor Wembanyama often come to mind before Ware. But Ware is already shooting a much higher percentage from outside while attempting a similar rate of threes on a per-minute basis. He’ll have to maintain that efficiency with more minutes and shots next season, but Ware’s potential is very clear.
Ware could also have a solid mentor on the Bucks in Myles Turner, who is another potent shooting big. Turner hit 38% from deep on 5.4 attempts per game last season. At times, he was definitely over-reliant on his outside shot (he only attempted 3.7 two-pointers per game), but can still provide good guidance to Ware on stretching the floor.
If Ware can gather some insight from Turner’s years of experience as a 3-point shooting big while using his size effectively inside the arc, he’ll be a force for opposing defenses to deal with. It’s obviously very early in his career, but Ware’s sky-high potential and unique play style should give Bucks fans hope that he could wind up as the crown jewel of the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade return.
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