National Basketball Association

Milwaukee Bucks: What Is To Be Expected From The Role Players?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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With the beginning of the new NBA season, what should Milwaukee Bucks fans be looking for from their role players?

Mandatory Credit: Sam Caravana- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel via USA TODAY Sports

The long, arduous offseason is over, and the 2016-2017 Milwaukee Bucks season has finally begun.

Any Bucks fan has already seen or can picture Giannis Antetokounmpo euro-stepping on a fast break, Jabari Parker rising above a defender for a posterizing dunk, and Greg Monroe yelling “AND-ONE” as he fires up a left handed hook shot.

Although this perception mostly comes from watching last season’s games and highlights, my primer last week provided everything fans needed to know regarding the upcoming season of the core. Today, I’ll be doing the same looking at those players who will spend much of their season coming off the bench or playing limited minutes.

Although this group won’t have as much to say about the team’s success, they all have a job to do, both organizationally and individually. Some of the players to follow are attempting to prove they belong and make a name for themselves in the league, while others are hoping to make an impact as a seasoned veteran.

The bottom line is, everyone has goals, and fulfilling them will go a long way towards making the Bucks’ season a success. Recognizing these goals will allow Bucks fans to evaluate them in real-time, which adds another element to the experience of watching the games.

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Mirza Teletovic

Can he maintain his shooting prowess with more pressure to perform?

Although Mirza Teletovic is only three years into his NBA career, it’s abundantly clear the lion’s share of his value comes in the form of one talent and one talent only. Fortunately, this talent was one severely lacking on last year’s Bucks, which explains why head coach Jason Kidd reportedly pushed to acquire him last season as well.

Telly shoots a ton of three-pointers, and makes them at a high rate to boot. Last season his 460 three-point attempts would have ranked first on the Bucks, and at 39.3 percent accuracy, he contains a rare combination of volume and efficiency.

In the preseason, we’ve seen promising signs from Teletovic, as he has displayed an affinity for the trailing transition three-pointer. This trait would work incredibly well with the talents to Giannis and Jabari, as both can secure a rebound and push the length of the court in an instant.

Although he isn’t the most versatile player, Teletovic’s abilities also create the opportunity for the Bucks to include him in some seriously strange lineups. As the best shooter on the team, it stands to reason that plugging him in the place of the injured Khris Middleton would yield the best offensive results, but simply swapping the two is not that simple.

With Giannis, Jabari, and Teletovic on the floor, the Bucks could go ultra-big playing a center with the trio, or Milwaukee could embrace the small-ball wave with Giannis or Teletovic at the five, as ESPN’s Zach Lowe says.

Downsize, and one of those three has to guard the opposing center. Milwaukee is confident all three can handle that in limited doses against some center types, and those smaller groups have a chance to be really exciting.

On the whole though, Teletovic was not brought in to revolutionize the Bucks’ offense; he was signed simply to continue his shooting exploits from previous years. In his NBA career, Mirza has not played for a contender or even a fringe playoff team, so translating his skills to a position with more pressure and expectation will be the goal here.

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Rashad Vaughn

Can he prove his NBA worth following a disastrous first year?

By all measures, both statistical and subjective, Rashad Vaughn’s rookie season was an abysmal one. His 4.2 PER was one of the worst ever for a rookie, and woeful shooting percentages of 30.5 percent overall and 29.3 percent from three do not give any appearance of tremendous ability in these areas.

Thus, entering his sophomore campaign, the expectations surrounding Vaughn are very different than last season. The general consensus a year ago was that the shooting guard possessed ample upside to become a scoring threat, but fans today are likely just looking for any sign of hope from the youngster.

With questions remaining over Vaughn’s third-year option and his future with the franchise, it is absolutely vital that he showcase some sort of competence in at least one area of the game.

This area could be defense, where many have said he has the physical tools to be effective, or perhaps spot-up shooting, where he was projected to thrive out of UNLV. With his compact release, Vaughn could develop into a J.J. Redick-type shooter that excels coming off screens for open shots.

Something, anything needs to materialize.

With Michael Carter-Williams, Tyler Ennis, and Khris Middleton absent from the roster, there is still playing time available for Vaughn, which is a luxury not afforded to many in his situation.

The two-guard is still very young even by NBA standards, as he just recently turned 20. His opportunities are not over, but this season will be extremely vital in proving his value to the Bucks.

Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports

Malcolm Brogdon

Can the rookie step in and contribute right away?

Perhaps nothing underscores the youth of the Bucks more than the fact that, as a rookie, 23 year old Malcolm Brogdon will only be the fifth youngest Buck.

A fifth-year senior at Virginia University, the Bucks used their second round draft pick on Brogdon not only because of his well-rounded skillset, but also due to his ability to produce quickly at the next level, as The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor points out.

Brogdon will adapt quickly because of his elite feel for the game. When he’s playing off the ball, he has a sense for filling space or cutting at just the perfect time to create an easy passing lane.

Brogdon should fit well with players like Giannis and Jabari because of his defense and shooting ability, especially at the backup point guard role, where it has been reported he will see time. This role should seem familiar to Bucks fans, as it is the exact prescription laid out for new signee Matthew Dellavedova.

Brogdon’s major weakness is his athleticism; even at summer league he struggled to create separation from defenders and wasn’t an explosive threat attacking the basket.

It’s generally regarded that explosiveness cannot be learned, especially at the NBA level, so Brogdon’s major challenge will be overcoming this deficit. Luckily, his role seems not to mandate a ton of dribble penetration or other such duty, so the path to success is clear.

If Brogdon can replicate in some capacity his defense and shooting from college, where he shot 39 percent from deep and posted a sub-100 defensive rating, he should fill all his goals for next season.

Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

Thon Maker

Can he dispel the naysayers and prove he belongs?

As I mentioned regarding Matthew Dellavedova last week, Thon Maker has inspired much discourse for a player who has yet to take the floor in an official NBA game. Depending on who you listen to, Maker is either a 23 year old bust who is completely unable to grasp the game or a dynamo who will revolutionize the game of basketball as we know it.

Obviously, the truth is somewhere between these two extremes. We’ve seen promising signs from Thon in his summer league campaign, but it remains to be seen if he will be able to practice his craft in the tougher, more organized regular season.

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With the Bucks’ logjam of centers in place, minutes seem to be in short supply for Maker, even factoring in his positional versatility. Not even in the preseason did he receive ample playing time, at 14.6 minutes and 3.4 points per game.

Therefore, it seems realistic to judge Thon not on his impact, but rather on his potential and production. A 2016-2017 version of the Bucks that relies on Maker to produce in a large role is likely an iteration that has failed in many of the things it set out to do.

Being the versatile prospect that he is, there isn’t really one skill or stat one could point to to make a judgement of Maker’s play, so the final verdict will come down to nothing more than the eye test.

If Thon can look the part of a competent player at age 19, much would be done to quell the doubts many fans and critics have. Being raw is alright, being completely outclassed is not. Again, this situation doesn’t have a ton of bearing on the team as a whole, but there are certainly things for Maker to be working towards.

Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

Jason Terry and Steve Novak

Can the veterans be reliable when called upon and provide valuable leadership?

Jason Terry and Steve Novak are combined into one section because they essentially both have the same goals for next season. Both veterans, Terry at 39 years old and Novak at 33, were brought in partially because of their three-point shot and in part because of their ability to lead.

Terry will likely have the larger opportunity for play, as the departure of Michael Carter-Williams and Tyler Ennis and injury to Khris Middleton have opened up minutes in the backcourt.

However, even though he played over 17 minutes per game with the Houston Rockets last year, trusting such an old player such as Terry with too large of a role is likely not a good strategy.

Novak projects to have even less of a role, as Mirza Teletovic and Michael Beasley seem to have usurped most of his function. Throughout his career, the journeyman has been an incredibly accurate three-point shooter, but a veritable lack of any other skill has prevented him from sticking in any role for an extended amount of time.

Still, his background in the city and wealth of knowledge should make him valuable to younger players with much still to learn.

Even on the end of the bench, as in the above cases, every Buck has a role and a set of goals for this season that they should be working towards. If these goals are met, the team could surprise the league with a playoff berth. Should they fail, the Bucks may once again be looking at a coveted pick in next year’s draft.

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