The Bucks are essentially done for this year, even if they gave the Sixers a hell of a game last night. In my last article, I discussed how we got to where we are, what we maybe should have done, and what exactly might be next. I offered no answers, and I can't offer any now either. But we're better off looking forward rather than mourning the lost opportunity.
There's already an excellent FanPost up that looks at the upcoming draft and how it might impact the Bucks. However, in a draft that's widely regarded as light on talent, I'm not going to look at that here. Rather, let's look into 2012, a full year later and (hopefully) under a new CBA.
This ESPN article (Insider required) highlights a player that I've heard of, but never really seen. His name is Anthony Davis, and he's a 6'10"...something...who's committed to Kentucky.
I won't delve into his scouting report too much, but I'll post this and let you draw your own conclusions:
Anthony Davis has a breakout weekend at Spiece Run n Slam 2010 Anthony Davis Mean Streets (viaCityLeagueHoopsTV)
At first glance, he looks like a tall skinny 15-year old dominating his JV team opponents. But no, this is a 18-year old kid playing in the highest-level tournaments he can to get experience for the NCAA. He looks slow, but that's only because he covers so much ground when he runs that it seems like he's jogging. And he doesn't look explosive when he jumps, but that's only because his arms span the distance between West Allis and, oh, I don't know, Seattle.
It really is the unnerving length that ruins the perspective and makes you question whether the video is legit. People shouldn't look like that! But here's an explanation why, courtesy of Chad Ford:
Davis has an unusual story. He was 6-foot-2 going into his junior year of high school -- a point guard. But a crazy growth spurt added 8 inches to his stature. Many kids get clumsy or awkward when their body grows that fast. Not Davis. He's rail thin, but still demonstrates the quickness, ballhandling and shooting abilities of a guard.
But it gets better. Sometimes those 6-foot-10 guards in a big man's body are the bane of an NBA scout's existence. They want their big men to rebound and block shots. That's where they are most valuable to a NBA team. Davis, is doing that as well. He's an aggressive rebounder, a big-time shot blocker and isn't afraid to dunk over people. In other words, he's the best of both worlds. Scouts are almost uniformly comparing him to a young Kevin Garnett.
He looks like Kevin Durant, models himself after Kevin Garnett, and is slated to be the latest Kentucky freshman-turned-top-5-pick. Provided he continues to develop, any team able to take him would gladly plug him in at the SF position and figure out how to use him. Now the question is...how can the Bucks get in position to draft him?