The 2024 NBA Draft has come and gone, free agency has just begun and the Milwaukee Bucks have made just a few small tweaks to their roster thus far.
In addition to adding Delon Wright in free agency, the Bucks have added three players. AJ Johnson and Tyler Smith were taken in the first and second rounds of the draft, respectively, and Stanley Umude signed free agency on a two-way deal.
So, how many 25 and under players do the Milwaukee Bucks have and what is their potential level?
The Milwaukee Bucks, including two-way players, have nine players who are 25 or younger, starting with the previously mentioned Umude, who is 25.
Stanley Umude joins Ryan Rollins and Jaylin Galloway as the two other players on two-way contracts for the Bucks. For the sake of looking at potential, the two-way guys will be the first three discussed, and then we'll count down the rest.
Looking at the Bucks' two-ways first
Stanley Umude played in 24 games for the Detroit Pistons in 2023-24 for an average of about 13 minutes per game. In those games, he averaged 5.3 points, 2.1 rebounds and less that one of everything else. However, his shooting could give some folks cause for optimism, as he shot 44 percent on field goals, 45.3 percent on 3-pointers and a low 58.3 percent on free throws.
The other interesting part of Umude is his build. Umude is a very intriguing size, standing at 6-foot-6 with a 6-foot-10 wingspan, so he's definitely got the length to play good weak-side defense to pick off passes wherever he stands.
The Milwaukee Bucks grabbed a couple of other players to put on two-way contracts last season in Ryan Rollins and Jaylin Galloway. Rollins was definitely the more impressive of the two, and the playing time and numbers reflect that.
Jaylin Galloway was brought to the Bucks at the beginning of March and played just seven games for the Wisconsin Herd for about 20 minutes per game. In that decent chunk of time, Galloway scored just 4.7 points per game, grabbed just 3.4 rebounds per game, had 1.4 assists, 1.1 turnovers and 1.3 blocks per game.
Galloway had some rough shooting numbers also, tallying 40.6 percent from the field, just 14.3 percent from the 3-point line and 66.7 percent from the free throw line.
Ryan Rollins, however, showed out much more effectively in his 29.5 minutes per game for the Herd. Rollins averaged 16.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 2.5 turnovers and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 42.8 percent from the field, 39.7 percent from the 3-point line and 68.8 percent from the free throw line.
So, of the three two-way players the Milwaukee Bucks have, Stanley Umude has the most potential, followed by Ryan Rollins and Jaylin Galloway.
No. 6: Chris Livingston
Chris Livingston, like Rollins and Galloway, spent extended time with the Wisconsin Herd last season. Livingston played 28 minutes per game and averaged 14.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.3 steals in that time. What excites this writer about Livingston is his combination of size and skills.
Livingston is a 6-foot-6, 220-pound point guard who measured in at the 2023 NBA Combine with a 6-foot-11 wingspan. That combination of size and length at the forward position is interesting. There is more development to be done with Livingston, but his numbers with the Herd, including 46.5 percent field goal shooting, 37.7 percent from the 3-point line and a small sample size 8-of-17 (47.1 percent) at the free throw line, show his potential.
Livingston has the skills to possibly serve as a defensive-minded backup forward in the future. With his length, he could cause problems for opposing guards and forwards trying to get passes past him. Also, if he could develop as a screen dodger, he could be a big disruptor in opponents trying to run dribble hand-off actions.
All in all, if Livingston can maintain his 3-point percentage and raise his defensive IQ, he could certainly fill a role similar to what Patrick Beverley did last season for the Milwaukee Bucks with more weight and length.
No. 5: AJ Green
Before you freak out that I have AJ Green ranked this low, remember that this list is based on potential. I believe AJ Green is the Milwaukee Bucks' 25-and-under player who is the closest to reaching his potential. The other way to look at this is that I believe out of the six players on this list, AJ Green is the most NBA-ready 25-or-younger player the Milwaukee Bucks have.
That disclaimer out of the way, there is a conceivable world where the Bucks don't add another shooting guard and AJ Green takes the starting shooting guard spot vacated by Malik Beasley's imminent departure. Or the Bucks do sign another shooting guard and AJ Green competes with him for the starting spot or a bench sniper role like he served last season at times.
Green is going into his third season with the Bucks, and based on the increased usage he saw under Doc Rivers, especially late in the season, coupled with the lack of additions at shooting guard (so far), it is not farfetched to expect him to occupy a larger role in the 2024-25 season.
In his first two seasons, 91 games total, AJ Green has established himself as a shooting threat every time he steps on the floor, inspiring nicknames like "Dairy Bird" and "Milk Mamba," with his 41.2 percent 3-point shooting mark. He still has some work to do defensively, but the effort is there. Cheers to big things for AJ Green this season.
No. 4: MarJon Beauchamp
The case study of MarJon Beauchamp is a tough one. Beauchamp's first two seasons have been a bit of a roller coaster for himself, fans and surely the Milwaukee Bucks front office and coaching staff.
He has shown flashes of some strong guard play but also seems to be growing slowly. Not helping matters was an ankle injury that kept him out for nearly all of Doc Rivers' tenure with the Bucks when he was brought in in late January, preventing the coach from getting a closer look at the wing.
It was less than a year ago that we Milwaukee Bucks fans were gawking over Beauchamp dropping 83 points in a Pro-Am game and salivating at the possibilities of what he could bring to the table.
It seems every time Beauchamp ends up with the Wisconsin Herd, he's dropping 20-plus points. Beauchamp averaged 24.7 in the three games he played for the Herd in 2023-24, and while his 3-point percentage leaves something to be desired, he's shown he should be at the NBA level, vying for playing time.
MarJon Beauchamp possesses the potential to be a rotational two-way player, with the ability to score and defend with energy as long as he doesn't reach too often, hopefully the Bucks see that potential realized in 2024-25.
No. 3: Tyler Smith
Tyler Smith was pick 33 in last week's 2024 NBA Draft and comes to the Milwaukee Bucks from the G-League Ignite. Smith talked about it multiple times during his introductory press conference with the Bucks that he feels that playing for the Ignite and going against NBA two-way players and rookies from last year gives him a leg up competition-wise compared to if he had gone to college.
Smith comes in as an immediate pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop-ready player who will also be a lob threat around the rim. Smith shot 36.4 percent from the 3-point line in 22 minutes per game for the Ignite and is a fairly reliable free throw shooter at 72.6 percent.
This writer believes Tyler Smith has the potential to be a 3-level scorer, similar to what Bobby Portis gives the Bucks. That's a role Smith could seamlessly step into in the future.
What puts Smith in the top three of this list is not only his potential to be like Bobby Portis offensively but his length. At 6-foot-10 with a 7-foot-1 wingspan plus a 38-inch vertical combined with crazy athleticism, Smith holds the ability to become a formidable shot blocker in the future.
It will take a little time to help Tyler Smith understand the NBA game as far as Xs and Os are concerned, but Brook Lopez has that defensive IQ, and if he can pass it down to Smith, he could become a steal in the second round for the Milwaukee Bucks.
No. 2 Andre Jackson Jr.
Speaking of potential second-round steals, Andre Jackson Jr. could absolutely grow to fit that description. Ajax absolutely still needs some polish, but he is dripping with raw potential. Andre Jackson Jr. could even become something of a secret weapon for the Bucks this upcoming season, as even in limited minutes last season, everyone saw him occupy a lot of different roles.
He has the energy to be a very strong defender, aided in part by his length, standing at 6-foot-6 with a 6-foot-9.5 wingspan and a 39.5-inch vertical. Again, some polish is required there.
In transition, the potential of Andre Jackson Jr. is glaringly obvious, even going back to his college tape with UConn when he helped lead them to a National Championship. He can lead the break and find the open man, or he can be the one to finish the play with a highlight play at the rim.
Offensively, when coming in the consensus was that Andre Jackson Jr. was going to need a lot of development, especially as a shooter. However, he surprised a lot of people last year by shooting 37 percent from the 3-point line. If he can keep that up, the Bucks can let a guy like Jae Crowder walk, stick Andre Jackson Jr. in that role and get younger and more athletic in the process.
No. 1: AJ Johnson
This may not be a popular pick for number one, nor was he a popular pick when the Milwaukee Bucks selected him 23rd overall in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft. However, the more time this writer sits with this pick and the more that is learned about him, the more exciting it gets.
First off, his weight is low, which has been a prominent concern. However, Johnson's size is nearly identical to that of a prominent guard in the NBA in Dejounte Murray.
AJ Johnson measured just over 6-foot-4 without shoes, 167 pounds with a 6-foot-8.5 (the seventh-longest of all guards measured at the NBA Combine) wingspan. Dejounte Murray wasn't at the NBA Combine, but at the Nike Skills Academy in 2014, before being drafted, he measured in at 6-foot-5, 170 pounds with a 6-foot-9.5 wingspan.
All this said, there is certainly a precedent for players his size coming into the NBA. It's also pretty fair to assume that he'll add weight at the NBA level; just look at what Giannis Antetokounmpo has done. While no one is expecting Johnson to add 50 pounds of muscle, if he could add, say, 25 pounds, he'd be very nearly the size of John Wall, who measured 6-foot-4, 195 when he came into the league.
The potential for AJ Johnson is a bit more of a hybrid between Murray and Wall, whereas his size is more similar to Murray but his skill set is more similar to that of Wall. Johnson possesses some insane athleticism for a player his size, boasting a 38-inch vertical.
AJ Johnson put his athleticism on display when he got the chance in the NBL last year, and similarly to draftmate Tyler Smith, he said that opting out of attending Texas to play professionally gave him a leg up in his development by playing against pro players as opposed to college peers.
What he gives the Bucks is an instant shot in the arm of speed and athleticism in the transition game. He is a pass-first player with combo guard potential. Too many people are looking at his stats and saying things like, "Oh, he averaged 2.4 points; he has to be trash," instead of actually watching some of his film and looking at the skills he possesses.
His speed plus long strides chew up open court in a big hurry, something that the Milwaukee Bucks struggled with on both ends last season. Johnson has some pretty good court vision and can deliver some highlight reel passes.
Not only is he a good passer, but he's got some good dribbling skills as well, something that could potentially help the Bucks as early as this year. Everyone has seen the team forced to use non-point guards to bring the ball up the floor far too often.
As previously mentioned, Johnson is insanely athletic, but he is so smooth with his explosiveness, which makes him a threat to cut off the ball and create problems for the opposing defense by finishing at the rim, sometimes with big dunks or finding kick-outs against collapsing defenses. With how the Bucks use the "dunker area" to collapse defenses, having a good passer who can get to those areas quickly with athleticism is a great thing to have.
Interestingly, AJ Johnson has been working out with Houston Rockets' budding star Jalen Green since the eighth grade. It doesn't add to his potential, but he has been working with NBA talent for essentially five years.
All in all, AJ Johnson gets the nod for the top spot in potential partially due to his age, but majorly because of the athleticism, dribbling and passing prowess he already possesses with the flashes of also being a solid shooter. He could grow to be a super athletic combo guard who can shoot threes and dunk on people.
Picking Johnson at 23 instantly made the Milwaukee Bucks a younger and more athletic team, two things they desperately needed.