Plenty of Milwaukee Bucks fans were amped when the team re-signed Ryan Rollins to a three-year, $12 million deal this offseason, with a player option in the final year. From outside the organization, it might seem puzzling – such excitement over a guy who averaged 6.2 points?
Already a contributor, Rollins, 23, flashed growth potential on both sides of the ball. He has the upside of a high-quality starter providing tough defense, efficient spot up shooting, and supplementary playmaking. He checked the first two boxes last season, making 41% of his threes, and should only get better. Speaking on the young guard’s potential, general manager Jon Horst compared him to a former Buck who enjoyed a 15-year NBA career.
Comp to Former Milwaukee Bucks Guard Constitutes “High Praise” from Horst
“I say this all the time and I say it with affection because he is one of my favorite people and I think he’ll love this shout-out,” Horst beamed over Rollins. “He reminds of me of George Hill. I think he has a George Hill-type career in front of him and that’s high, high praise in my opinion because G-Hill is one of the best people that I’ve been around.”
Last playing in 2022-23, Hill changed teams 10 times in his career, including two separate stints in Milwaukee. Packaged in the Jrue Holiday trade, he returned the next season, after the Bucks won the title without him.
A career 38% three-point marksman, he stuck around as long as he did thanks to a versatile skillset founded on defense and occasionally elite shooting. Hill led the league in 2019-20 hitting threes at a 46% clip, and shot 39.9% or better in five seasons.
His 10.4 career PPG and 3.1 APG fail to measure his impact. Hill was adept at the so-called little things that underlie role player value. While Hill came off the bench in almost half of his career games, he was hardly a scrub. Accounting for total games and minutes played, his 71 career win shares make him about 80% as valuable as Damian Lillard (by WS/min). Hill’s value would not come through in a superficial side-by-side of counting stats.
Continued Growth Would Put Rollins Well on His Way to Becoming Versatile Playmaker
Next season in Milwaukee, Rollins will likely see a mix of starts and reserve appearances similar to last season. He should get backup minutes behind Kevin Porter Jr. and Cole Anthony at the point, but he can also play two-guard alongside one of them. Having Rollins in his arsenal gives coach Doc Rivers a wide variety of lineup options, such as:
Porter or Anthony at PG, Rollins at SG.
Rollins at PG, Gary Trent Jr. or AJ Green at SG.
Adding a bit of weight would make him an excellent fit for three-guard groups: Porter at PG, Rollins at SG, Trent at SF. And so on.
Off the bench or starting, Hill contributed leak-free defense and secondary facilitator/scoring traits that would be a great fit alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo playing point-forward. In fact those two played three-and-a-half seasons together during Hill’s career. If Rollins topped out at a replica, the Bucks would be thrilled with the development of the former 44th overall pick.
Obviously they’re not expecting final boss mode next season, but as long as Rollins builds on his skills in that “George Hill-type mold,” his contract will end up looking like a steal.
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