The Milwaukee Bucks will pick 17th in the upcoming 2017 NBA Draft. What realistic options should the Bucks consider with the pick?
The Milwaukee Bucks have a number of options with the 17th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. With a month of preparation before June 22, the organization will balance team needs with the talent and upside of prospects to create a board ranking the available players.
It is possible to discover star talent at any pick in the draft, and these playoffs have highlighted that in a dazzling way. Draymond Green has been the best defensive player in the postseason, and was a second round pick. All-NBA guard Isaiah Thomas was selected with the very last pick of the 2011 NBA Draft.
Milwaukee itself has a close-up view of finding a star outside of the top picks in a draft, selecting All-NBA forward Giannis Antetokounmpo with the 15th pick of the 2013 NBA Draft. At No. 17, the possibility of hitting another home run is absolutely in play.
The Bucks are stocked with talent, however, from dynamic scorer Jabari Parker to two-way wing Khris Middleton, not to mention the seemingly limitless potential of Thon Maker. They have the luxury of not swinging for the fences, but rather drafting to fill a specific need from among more established prospects.
With the entire NBA landscape buzzing about the potential of this draft class, which players might be available when the Bucks are on the clock at 17? And among those players, who should Milwaukee target to help the team move toward contention?
Answering those questions takes us first to Tobacco Road, and a school that has become a factory for elite basketball talent: Duke University.