Bucks GM Jon Horst hoping to find immediate impact in draft

Over the past few NBA drafts, the Milwaukee Bucks have built a reputation as a team that particularly values length, versatility and players who they believed were high-upside prospects. They didn't have to be NBA-ready right away, but the hope was that with development they would reach higher ceilings than other options.

That approach worked out in 2013, of course, with Giannis Antetokounmpo and also led to the Bucks providing the surprise of the 2016 draft when they took Thon Maker 10th overall. The jury is still out on D.J. Wilson, but their 2017 first-round pick at least generally fits into that mold as well.

This year things could be different when the Bucks, who own the 17th pick for the second straight season, make their selection. Upside is still a factor, but finding someone who can contribute right away has become a bigger deal for general manager Jon Horst.

“Most important to me, I think like a home run pick for us would be a player that can impact our team this year as a rookie and that’s a hard thing to find at 17," Horst said Tuesday at the team's practice facility. "But if we can find someone that can do that, that also has the ability to get better throughout their rookie (year) and play on their rookie contract and then hopefully have a long career with the Bucks, that would be a home run.”

Horst, who was promoted to the GM position just over a year ago, admits this approach is a change in philosophy from past drafts and to an extent is a change from how he handled things last year.

The Bucks have plenty of young players who are still developing — with Horst mentioning Wilson, Maker and Sterling Brown. While those players, particularly Maker and Brown, have shown flashes, there is still room for them to grow into the solid rotation or starting-level players the Bucks hope they can become.

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"Because of that, I feel more comfortable knowing that if we end up with a guy who is maybe not as high of upside  ... (it) doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t take him because helping us now is important," Horst said.

Of course, finding a player who can jump right into the rotation is difficult. Antetokounmpo got that chance as part of a 15-67 Bucks team in 2013-'14, but likely wouldn't have seen much of the floor if Milwaukee had been competitive. In the years since then, the Bucks' first-round picks have experienced a relatively slow introduction to the league, with Jabari Parker an exception. The No. 2 pick in 2014, Parker got off to a strong start as a rookie before tearing his left ACL just two months into the season.

Horst doesn't want to put undue pressure on the team's potential pick — he recognizes the difficulties of breaking into the league — but that doesn't mean setting the bar low, either. Getting someone who can do more than just fill out the roster would be a definite positive for the Bucks, especially considering their tight situation relative to the luxury tax.

What skills, then, would be the most beneficial for the Bucks to add?

“Shooting will help us, defensive toughness and rebounding would help us, guys that have positional size will help us," Horst said. "Different things like that are different attributes, but at the end of the day we want a player that can come in and impact our roster. It’s a valuable roster spot for us.”

With experience picking at No. 17, Horst and his staff know they will have multiple options. The draft is shaping up to feature numerous guards and wings that should be available at that spot, with most of the best big men projected to be taken in the lottery.

Considering his team's needs, Horst believes the glut of guards and wings in the middle of the first round could actually work in the Bucks' favor.

“I think it does actually feel like a good fit," Horst said. "We’re really happy with the group at 17. Our group, we feel strongly that we’re going to get a good player there. There’s a lot of interest in the 17th pick, so we’ll explore ideas of moving up, explore ideas of moving down, potentially even moving out of the draft. But at the end of the day if we sit at the 17th pick, we feel really good about the group of guys we’ll be able to draft from.”

More from Horst

The Bucks GM touched on other topics during his meeting with the media Tuesday. Here are some of the other things Horst had to say.

On the team's prospective draft pick fitting with Antetokounmpo:

“I think there’s a lot of different things that fit with Giannis because Giannis has a great amount of skill set and different things that he brings. You’ve got to be a great competitor, you have to be a great professional and be serious to fit with Giannis. You need to be able to shoot the basketball, especially on the wings. And I think tempo, guys that play with tempo and pace are going to be important."

On drafting to fit new coach Mike Budenholzer's system:

"He’s going to want to play a faster pace of basketball, he’s going to want to play a game where they share the ball, where they move the ball, shoot it a lot. You’re going to want to pass, handle and shoot at every position, so guys that are offensively skilled and then compete on the defensive end are going to be really important for us.”

On the Bucks keeping their predraft workouts private this year:

“For us, we decided to keep our workouts private this year and it was important for us. Some teams do that, some teams don’t. It’s proprietary information to us and information, I think, gives us a competitive advantage over the rest of the league. I’m not going to share who we brought in, but I will tell you that we have the 17th pick right now. We feel very confident that we brought in the right players throughout the workout process.”