Milwaukee Bucks: 5 goals for Donte DiVincenzo’s rookie season

The Milwaukee Bucks hope they found a gem in NCAA Tournament darling Donte DiVincenzo. What goals should the Villanova alum have for his rookie season?

The Milwaukee Bucks have had a number of consistent problems over the past few seasons, from low rebounding rates to a propensity to give up corner 3-pointers. Offensively they have struggled to generate offense from bench units, specifically since Greg Monroe was traded near the beginning of last season.

Milwaukee ranked 27th in bench scoring last season with 27.7 points per game. This was not a case of defensive bench units that found success through holding an opponent from scoring, either. The Bucks were 25th in bench net rating at -1.8, the only team in the bottom eight of that stat to finish outside the bottom eight in overall record.

Solving the bench woes had to be a priority for the Bucks this offseason, and they made it one from the start in selecting Donte DiVincenzo with their first round pick. DiVincenzo may have been one of the 30 most talented guards in college basketball last season, but he played behind Jalen Brunson, the eventual Wooden Award recipient for 2018, and therefore came off the bench.

The sixth man role did not hold DiVincenzo back, as he submitted a strong season and capped it off with a Herculean performance in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament. The Bucks want to deploy DiVincenzo in a similar role as a bench scorer and facilitator, and they believe the rookie can immediately improve their bench’s success.

Expecting a rookie to propel a team to a title is a goal too lofty to even entertain, especially one taken outside of the lottery. Yet that does not mean DiVincenzo cannot set goals for himself that help he and his team succeed. Here are five goals for the rookie to strive for in the 2018-19 NBA season.