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Milwaukee Bucks: 5 takeaways from 2017 NBA Summer League

By Josh Cornelissen

LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 14: Bronson Koenig #24 of the Milwaukee Bucks passes the ball against the Utah Jazz during the 2017 Summer League on July 14, 2017 at Cox Pavillion in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 14: Bronson Koenig #24 of the Milwaukee Bucks passes the ball against the Utah Jazz during the 2017 Summer League on July 14, 2017 at Cox Pavillion in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 12: Rashad Vaughn #20 of the Milwaukee Bucks drives against Eric Stuteville #88 of the Sacramento Kings during the 2017 Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 12, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Sacramento won 69-65. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 12: Rashad Vaughn #20 of the Milwaukee Bucks drives against Eric Stuteville #88 of the Sacramento Kings during the 2017 Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 12, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Sacramento won 69-65. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

2. Rashad Vaughn may have extended his career

NBA first round picks are entitled to at least two years of guaranteed money; each fall a team must decide if they wish to exercise a player’s option for the following summer, first for a third season and again for a fourth.

October brings the deadline for whether the Milwaukee Bucks would exercise the fourth-year option for Rashad Vaughn, the 17th overall pick in 2015. Vaughn has been unable to crack the rotation with Milwaukee, spending time in the D-League trying to develop into the player the Bucks drafted him to be.

Teams risk losing out on a cost-controlled asset if they decline a player’s option, so most players are kept around for the full four years and then face restricted free agency. That does come with a cost, and NBA teams would be foolish to pay a player to stick around who clearly isn’t cut out for the big league.

With Vaughn’s performance through two seasons, it was at least a possibility that Milwaukee would decline his fourth year option. He needed to show up at Summer League in Las Vegas and make it clear that he was a player worth keeping around. It seems that he may have done just that.

Vaughn averaged 16 points per game in Las Vegas Summer League, including a 31-point explosion in the Bucks’ only win. He was active on both ends of the court, attacking the rim on offense and pulling up from long range. Defensively he showed instinct to block shots, a new skill for him, and generated a number of steals and deflected passes.

The question of whether Vaughn will become a rotation player for Milwaukee or another team is yet to be determined. The Bucks have invested in other players around him so that they are not dependent on his development to compete. But Vaughn may have showed just enough to make it worth keeping him around through the remainder of his rookie scale contract.

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