7 players the Milwaukee Bucks gave up on far too soon
By Dalton Sell
No. 4 – Christian Wood
Christian Wood’s time with the Bucks was nothing short of strange. He dominated with their team in the G-League, the Wisconsin Herd, but saw minimal action with the Bucks. Wood appeared in a mere 13 games with the Bucks for an average of 4.8 minutes per contest before being let go for Pau Gasol. While Gasol undeniably had name recognition, he was in the late stages of his career and played in just three games for Milwaukee.
After being let go by the Bucks, Wood immediately showcased the untapped potential he had as a player. He signed with the New Orleans Pelicans, and in eight games, he averaged 16.9 points and 7.9 boards per game. It certainly stung Bucks fans to see that, as many of them had been begging for the G-League standout to get some legitimate minutes in Milwaukee’s frontcourt rotation. He has gone on to become a solid rotational player and average north of 16 points per game over the past three seasons.
Due to criticism of Milwaukee’s inability to develop young talent over the past few years, this is a decision that certainly looms large. Wood hasn’t turned out to be a star, but there’s no doubt that he could have fit in very nicely in Milwaukee’s frontcourt alongside Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez. His scoring and rebounding, in addition to his youth, could have helped mightily.