The Milwaukee Bucks have had a very head-scratching 2024 NBA offseason. They haven’t made moves that the fanbase has liked. Reaching for AJ Johnson with the 23rd overall pick in the draft was a start for this fanbase. Many of them called for general manager Jon Horst to be fired after that selection.
Milwaukee on the second day of the NBA Draft selected Tyler Smith from the G-League with the 33rd overall pick. Some fans liked that selection better than the first-round selection. What is also mind-boggling is that they have not been able to trade Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis, Pat Connaughton, or Khris Middleton at all this offseason.
Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez has been rumored in a bunch of trades this offseason. Will see if Horst makes another move before the start of the 2024-2025 NBA season, but it appears as if the roster might be set. They also signed Delon Weight and Gary Trent Jr. as free agents.
Bleacher Report Writer Jonathan Wasserman Reveals What the Role Of Milwaukee Bucks Draft Pick AJ Johnson Will Be For the 2024-2025 Season
Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report predicted the role of each first-round pick in the 2024 NBA Draft for the upcoming 2024-2025 season. For AJ Johnson of the Milwaukee Bucks, Wasserman believes that Johnson is going to spend the 2024-2025 season in the NBA G-League. Jonathan Wasserman said:
“AJ Johnson played just 8.3 minutes per game in Australia. He’s 19 years old and 167 pounds. The Milwaukee Bucks didn’t draft him to strengthen their 2025 NBA title chances.
He showcased some exciting creation, shotmaking, athleticism and playmaking at the NBA combine and during summer league. It’s easy to picture a scoring combo guard based on the highlights and flashes.
Given his frame, shot selection and overall decision-making, Johnson just isn’t ready to execute consistently enough against NBA defenses for a team under pressure to get back to the Eastern Conference Finals.”
Milwaukee should have drafted someone else with this selection rather than Johnson. Players like Terrence Shannon Jr. from Illinois, Tyler Kolek from Marquette, and Johnny Furphy from Kansas were still available with the 23rd pick. Those players would have been a better fit for the Milwaukee Bucks now than AJ Johnson is going to be.
This is why the Johnson pick is head-scratching. Johnson could hit in 4-5 years from now., but this is a basketball team that is not in rebuild mode. They needed someone who could help Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard win an NBA Championship now instead. This draft pick could cost Jon Horst his job later on.
