Breakout Bucks: Grayson Allen, MarJon Beauchamp Rising Stars?

As the NBA season nears, the rosters are beginning to shape up and players are learning their roles. The Milwaukee Bucks and the Atlanta Hawks have entered Dubai for an exclusive batch of preseason games. With two preseason games remaining against the Bulls and Nets, Coach Mike Budeholzer will have to begin forming his lineup for opening night.

Two players in particular seem as though they could transform into stars. Bucks’ guards Grayson Allen and MarJon Beauchamp aim to add a boost for the 2022-23 season.

A Duo For the Bucks’ Future

With expectations of making another deep playoff run, and competing for a championship, the Bucks won’t be generous with minutes. By the start of 2023, Milwaukee should be back to full strength after losing Khris Middleton and Joe Ingles to injury. Middleton has had a vague timeline for his injury, but he has stated he should be back relatively soon after the start of the regular season.

Grayson Allen’s Rising Stock with the Bucks

The coaching staff will likely keep the minutes restricted to a group of players. Grayson Allen looks to fill in for the injured Middleton, and he may remain as a core bench player for the season. Allen is a career 9.4 points per game scorer and he didn’t see extended NBA minutes until the 2020 season with the Grizzlies. In 2020, Allen averaged 10.6 points and 25.6 minutes per game. Last season was by far the most Allen has played in a season with 27.3 minutes per game on average.

Allen could provide another pleasant boost for the Bucks, building off of his production last year in the playoffs especially. What sets Allen apart is his basketball IQ and the fact that he is looking for the best play each time he possesses the ball. Grayson Allen haters chose to bring up his unfortunate fouls in the NBA and with Duke, in particular. His intelligence and the coaching he received on the mental aspect of basketball is typically overshadowed by those actions, however he has moved past that as a player.

Grayson Allen shot 44.8% from the floor last year, as well as 45.1% from the floor in the playoffs. He chooses to take confident shots and rarely chooses the bad shot. If he does, it is typically to draw a foul at the hoop. Along with this, Allen also shot 40.9% from deep, hitting 2.4 threes a game for the Bucks last season. He has the tools to develop into a top shooting guard, and now Allen may get extra minutes to start the year with Middleton out.

The Bucks Drafted the Future at 24th Overall?

In the 2022 draft, the Milwaukee Bucks selected MarJon Beauchamp 24th overall. Beauchamp played the previous year in the G-League for the Ignite, where he averaged 15.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Standing at 6’7″ and listed as a Shooting Guard/Small Forward, Beauchamp has had one of the most odd routes to the NBA after playing a year in college for the Yakima Valley Yaks. He had offers from nearly every top college basketball program, however, he spent a year during the pandemic training with a professional camp to prepare for the 2021 NBA Draft.

Due to the fact that he trained with professionals and trained for the NBA draft, there were concerns over his amateur status. Beauchamp chose to sign with the Ignite in September of 2021, and played great basketball, displaying his size and athleticism against his best competition yet. He played well enough to end up as a first round pick, largely due to his size and potential.

The reality is that Beauchamp likely won’t play much this season. There isn’t a real role for him and the Bucks have multiple players ahead of him at each position he plays. Beauchamp will have to prove himself to earn more minutes, and he could do just that.

He has the raw scoring ability to get past most players, and he is crafty enough to find a way. However, his court vision and handles aren’t ready just yet. Along with that, for the Ignite he struggled to move past players in the paint and got bodied a handful of times.

Beauchamp Still Needs Time

There is no doubt that MarJon Beauchamp can prove himself and create a role this season. Given the circumstances and roster, he realistically won’t play over 10 minutes a game. He needs more time to fill out his frame and work on proper NBA conditioning.

Given another full year of working with top level coaches and trainers should give MarJon the extra knowledge he needs. Once he is able to figure his body out and how to use it on the floor, he could make a serious impact. With another year of work, Grayson Allen and MarJon Beauchamp could become more familiar faces across the NBA.

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