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

By Josh Cornelissen

Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images
Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images /
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Photo by Mohammed Elshamy/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Photo by Mohammed Elshamy/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images /

2. Make an All-Rookie Team

The players in contention for Rookie of the Year are almost always lottery picks, recent exception of teammate Malcolm Brogdon notwithstanding. Of the last 30 players to win Rookie of the Year, 29 were lottery picks (sans Brogdon) and 24 were top-five picks. A whopping 15 (50 percent) were the first overall pick.

Last season, Donovan Mitchell broke onto the scene and pushed for the award, but even he was a lottery pick, albeit selected at No. 13. It could be a sign that more and more players picked later in the draft are going to be in the mix for this award. Even so, that makes it a long shot for a player such as DiVincenzo to get into the discussion.

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    • The Milwaukee Bucks have an established star in Giannis Antetokounmpo and his capable wingman Khris Middleton. Players such as Eric Bledsoe and Brook Lopez deserve shots and will take them. The volume and role are simply not there for DiVincenzo to realistically push for such an award.

    What DiVincenzo can absolutely aim for is a spot on an All-Rookie team. DiVincenzo can come in and steadily increase his role, earn an invitation to the Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend, and by the end of the year be acknowledged as having one of the 10 best rookie seasons in the league.

    Last season, seven of the 10 players selected were lottery picks, but John Collins made the team after being selected in the same range as DiVincenzo, and Kyle Kuzma was picked late in the first round. Every year a handful of players make the team as non-lottery picks. The opportunity is there for DiVincenzo to step up, be a productive player, and receive recognition at the end of the season.

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