Milwaukee Bucks: Complete 2018 offseason grades

Drafting Donte DiVincenzo

Milwaukee has followed a consistent pattern in the draft over the past few seasons: Swing for the fences with a high-ceiling, low-floor prospect in the first round, and take an older, more proven player who can step in immediately in the second round.

The strategy netted the team Giannis Antetokounmpo in the first round and Malcolm Brogdon and Sterling Brown in the second; it also churned through players such as Rashad Vaughn and D.J. Wilson, who may not be NBA players.

This season, the team kept the exciting upside while also taking a player in the first round who has polish to his game. Villanova guard Donte DiVincenzo learned from one of the best coaches in Jay Wright, and translated his skill and development into a monster showing in the NCAA Final Four, winning Most Outstanding Player for the champion Wildcats.

Coming into the draft, the Bucks’ greatest need was at center, but that is also the position easiest to address in free agency — as the team later did. Thus, the Bucks wisely chose to address another need, that of an offensive creator off the bench. Players such as Tony Snell or Brown can shoot and defend, but neither is going to break down a defense. DiVincenzo has the potential to do just that.

He is certainly not a perfect prospect, which is both why he was available at No. 17 and why many draft pundits had him ranked further down the board (my personal board slotted him at No. 22). Coming off the bench in college meant his projections are based off of a more limited sample, and key areas of his game — defense, shooting, scoring at the rim — could easily turn into strengths or fail to develop to the elite level needed in the NBA.

DiVincenzo is not a flash-in-the-pan, however, as he was a solid player all season for the Wildcats. He brings not only consistency but tantalizing upside, in addition to some of the best nicknames in this draft class. The “Big Ragu” may immediately be the best Italian-American in the NBA right now (although certainly not in basketball; both Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi also claim that common heritage).

If DiVincenzo can put everything together early on, he can help the Bucks immediately. Even if his development comes along more slowly, he represents a low-cost option to back up either backcourt position. If the team moves on from either Eric Bledsoe or Brogdon, then he could become the third guard. He is not an immediate starter, but the Bucks don’t need him to be.

Grade: B+