Milwaukee Bucks: A look back at NBA Draft history before 2018
The Milwaukee Bucks will have the 17th pick in the upcoming 2018 NBA Draft. Here is a brief draft history of the Bucks’ drafts prior to 2018.
In the 2018 NBA Draft, the Milwaukee Bucks have the 17th overall pick. They were only able to keep the pick due to losing the tiebreaker with the Miami Heat, where the Bucks fell to 17th. If they had won the tiebreaker, they would’ve lost the pick to the Phoenix Suns from the Eric Bledsoe trade.
The Bucks do not have a second round pick in this draft due to their trade for Tyler Zeller midseason. They would have had the 45th pick.
The Bucks have had the 17th pick three times in the last four years.
As far as draft night goes, the Bucks seem pretty comfortable when they have picks 10 or later. Since 1998, the Bucks have only had six picks in the top nine. Dirk Nowitzki (No. 9 in 1998), Andrew Bogut (No. 1 in 2005) and Jabari Parker (No. 2 in 2014) have all been successful in the league.
There have been some less successful picks in the top nine with T.J. Ford, Yi Jianlian and Joe Alexander all flaming out. However, it is not just the 17th pick where the Bucks seem to repeat on.
The No. 10 pick
In the last 21 years, the Milwaukee Bucks have had the 10th pick in the NBA draft four times. However, they appear to be a little hit-or-miss with this pick. In 1997, they selected Danny Fortson, who had a role playing career. He just never played for the Bucks, being traded on draft night for Ervin Johnson.
In 2011 the Bucks selected Jimmer Fredette with the 10th pick but he was another who would never play for the Bucks. He was traded on draft night in a three-team trade with the Sacramento Kings.
However, there have been two success stories. Brandon Jennings was drafted with the 10th pick in 2009. He played four good seasons with the Bucks before being involved in the trade with the Detroit Pistons that bought Khris Middleton to the team. This season, since his return from his Achilles injury, he was resigned to an end-of-season contract.
Thon Maker is the other success. He was taken with the 10th pick of the 2016 NBA Draft and has been growing into his game ever since. He has shown what he is capable of in playoffs where he becomes a defensive phenom.
The mid draft success stories
In 2005, the Milwaukee Bucks took Ersan Ilyasova with the 36th pick of the draft. He was a solid player who started 257 of his 453 games with the Bucks. Just two years later, Milwaukee selected Ramon Sessions with the 55th pick. He has played for eight teams in his career but is a solid veteran point guard now.
In 2008, the Bucks then selected Luc Mbah a Moute with the 37th pick. Mbah a Moute would end up playing five seasons with the Bucks and has developed into a quintessential 3-and-D player. None of these players is still with the Bucks
However, the best stories are those still to come. John Henson was taken in the 2012 NBA Draft with the 14th pick. He has developed into a starter and a solid contributor on this team. Any time you can get a starter in the middle of the first round, you have done well.
Malcolm Brogdon was taken with the 36th pick in the 2016 draft. He won Rookie of the Year in 2017, becoming the first ever player to win this award who was taken in the second round.
Then we get to Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Greek Freak was taken with the 15th pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. Antetokounmpo has developed into one of the top players in the entire league. He led the Bucks in 2016-17 in scoring, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. He is the complete player and is also a shining example of what can be found in the draft at this stage.
The history by the numbers
The Milwaukee Bucks have had the 17th pick four times in the history of their franchise. In 1969, the same year they selected Kareem Abdul-Jabbar at No. 1, they selected Bob Greacen out of Rutgers University. Greacen would only play 43 games with the Bucks, averaging 2.6 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.
In 1971, they selected Collis Jones who would never play for the Bucks. There was then a 44-year gap until the next time the Bucks picked 17th in a draft.
In 2015, they selected Rashad Vaughan out of UNLV. Vaughan only played 133 games for the Bucks, averaging 3.1 points and 1.2 rebounds. He was moved in the trade that bought Zeller to the Bucks last season.
Last year the Bucks also had the 17th pick, taking D.J. Wilson out of the University of Michigan. The rookie played in 22 games, averaging 1.0 points and 0.5 rebounds per game. In all fairness though, Wilson only played 3.2 minutes per game.
The most successful and notable No. 17 picks in NBA Draft history are Phil Jackson (1967), Shawn Kemp (1989), Jermaine O’Neal (1996), Radoslav Neterovic (1998), Desmond Mason (2000), Josh Smith (2004), Danny Granger (2005), Roy Hibbert (2008), Jrue Holiday (2009) and Dennis Schroeder (2013).
Next: 2018 NBA Mock Draft - Doncic still No. 1 in post-lottery edition
The Milwaukee Bucks need another solid bench contributor to take the next step. Lets hope they can get that with this pick.