Point guard depth will be a necessity for the Milwaukee Bucks this summer. While plenty of people have pitched players like Tyus Jones and Malcolm Brogdon, one less recognizable name they may have a shot at is Dalano Banton, who spent this past season in Portland. The youngster could make for an interesting low-risk target.
Bucks could take a flyer on young guard
Right off the bat, Banton's physical profile leaps off the page. Despite standing at 6-foot-9, Banton is listed as a point guard. Indeed, he's capable of leading a second unit as an orchestrator, finding his teammates with quality passes. Banton uses that same build to hound players defensively, matching up with all different shapes and sizes. The Milwaukee Bucks could use both of those attributes.
At 25, Banton is also still incredibly young. It's no secret that the Milwaukee Bucks need to bring in more youth this summer. With Damian Lillard sitting out, this could be a quality time to stock up on guard talent to try and find their point guard(s) of the future. This could be a good opportunity for Banton to earn the first consistent role of his career.
Though the profile is compelling, there is a reason why Banton will likely not be on the radar of many teams this summer. He's also struggled with consistency and efficiency, and he didn't grow much in that regard this past season by averaging 8.3 points on 7.6 shot attempts per game. He's also a poor floor spacer, shooting 30.4 percent from deep in his young NBA career.
That last month of this past season paints the picture perfectly. He averaged an impressive 16 points per game, but he shot just 33.6 percent on 17.4 shot attempts. That's brutal. However, in that span, he also averaged 4.7 assists, 3.7 rebounds, and a block per game. Even if the scoring is shaky, he can still impact the game in other ways.
To be crystal clear, this is not a cry for Banton to come in and be Milwaukee's next starting point guard. This is about bringing the youngster in on a cheap prove-it deal to let him compete for a spot in a point guard rotation that is full of question marks. Milwaukee should leave no stone unturned in its quest to fill out the roster.
Despite the inconsistent play, Banton has second-unit sparkplug written all over him. For a team that has plenty of offseason priorities elsewhere, this could be a low-risk, high-reward move.
Stay tuned for more Milwaukee Bucks analysis.