Picking in the NBA Draft is sometimes the easiest thing in the world. The San Antonio Spurs knew they were selecting VictorWembanyama the moment they got the top pick last year and had no hesitations about that. Yet, most times, there's a lot more to consider, and it's a hard task, especially if you have a late pick, which the Milwaukee Bucks have luckily had over the last few years.
I said luckily because a late pick means a good regular season record, but it obviously makes it harder for the executives working on the scouts and draft night. When the top prospects are gone, you have to pick from a bunch of players whose talent comes with some hesitations. You can nail it and have yourself a future star, but you can also put your hopes in a player who's out of the league two years later.
The Milwaukee Bucks have hit on some later picks in the past, but not often
Milwaukee has had the short end of the stick a few times lately, with players like DJ Wilson or Jordan Nwora, who haven't really fit the team and have been gone not long after their arrival. But that hasn't always been the case.
The franchise has found some gems where nobody expected it to find any, and since the Bucks have the number 23 pick and a second-rounder this year, they'll have to do it again if they want to add a valuable player on draft night.
Since that night is getting closer, we'll now go through four times the team used a late pick to select players who ended up being important pieces of the roster. Going back from the present to 1989, the year the NBA Draft started having its current format with two rounds, we'll choose the four best players the Bucks picked 23rd or later, summing up what they did for the team in their respective runs.
Because of that, players who were drafted by the Bucks but only shined elsewhere won't be considered for this post, even if they played for Milwaukee at some point. That said, let's start with No. 4.