Five Things to Watch: Milwaukee Bucks

So far, so good: The likable Sanders has been doing and saying all the right things over the summer, but expectations are now decidedly higher for a player who 12 months ago was merely a fringe rotation player.

No one is expecting Sanders to become a franchise savior, but the Bucks are no doubt hoping that he becomes a bit more refined offensively while providing the same dominating defensive presence. The latter is particularly crucial considering that any hope Milwaukee has of returning to the playoffs will be predicated on Sanders staying healthy and anchoring what figures to be a defense-first roster.

3. They can shoot, but can they score? The Bucks struggled to score consistently last season (22nd in offensive efficiency), a predictable outcome for a team whose two leading scorers were also woefully inefficient. But the loss of Dunleavy also hurts, and for all their inconsistency, Ellis and Jennings were both more than capable of scoring off the bounce and in pick-and-rolls.

While Knight and Mayo don’t have the raw talent or pick-and-roll skill of the departed Ellis and Jennings, the good news is that they are younger, cheaper and will likely be easier for Drew to fit into his ball-movement offense. They also are both quality spot-up shooters from deep, a trait they share with seemingly everyone else the Bucks added this summer.

So considering they still have precisely zero post threats, the Bucks figure to compensate for their lack of individual dynamism with ball movement and 3-point shooting, neither of which was a particular strength last season. With a starting lineup that projects to boast four quality shooters in Knight, Mayo, Butler and Ilyasova, the Bucks should be able to punish teams for surrendering open shots, but the real question is whether they will be able to create enough open looks to begin with.

4. Will any of the youngsters break out? Next February’s All-Star festivities in New Orleans will mark the 10-year anniversary of the last time the Bucks had an invitee (Michael Redd), underscoring just how star-starved Milwaukee has been since the end of the Big Three era. All of which gets at the core of the debate about rebuilding vs. competing. How do the Bucks find a star worth building around?

Hammond doesn’t have any illusions about the Bucks being able to find a transformative player via free agency, which was a big reason why Milwaukee swung for the fences with Antetokounmpo on draft night and opted to make the 21-year-old Knight the centerpiece of the Jennings deal. Adding in Sanders and Henson, the Bucks have a nice group of young players to develop, but it’s more of a young core-by-committee approach at this stage. At this point, only Sanders has even proven he can be a legit NBA starter, so which (if any) of the youngsters actually pan out is far from certain.

The youngest player in the 2013 draft, Antetokounmpo may have the highest ceiling of anyone on the roster. But he also has never faced anything close to NBA competition and is likely a couple years from making a meaningful impact. On the flip side, Henson may be primed for a breakout season, which could force the Bucks to consider moving Ilyasova and his unique talents sooner rather than later.

Nabbing a top talent in the 2014 draft would of course be a huge help, but that’s also why Milwaukee’s playoff ambitions might get in the way of its long-term best interests. If the young players make major strides this season, the Bucks have a much better chance of making the playoffs and sliding into the middle of the draft once again.

Hammond has drafted exceptionally well from that spot over the past few seasons, but it is clearly a much more difficult place to work from for a team in need of top-tier talent. On the flip side, the Bucks likely will find themselves with a top-10 pick if their young players don’t pan out, and in that scenario it would be imperative that they connect on their next draft pick.

Considering where they were at the end of April, the Bucks can feel good that they have at least moved on from a formula that clearly was not going to work. Unfortunately, it may be a couple years before we know if they have stumbled upon something that does.

5. Larry Drew looking to win now … and later. Unwanted in Atlanta despite three playoff trips in as many seasons, Drew faces the unenviable task of trying to compete immediately while simultaneously developing the young talent. As expected from an experienced coach, he has pushed all the right PR buttons over the summer, talking up the importance of Henson and Sanders while emphasizing the importance of building relationships with players (code for “Hey guys, I’m not Scott Skiles!).

Managing a locker room was a point of strength for Drew in Atlanta, particularly last season when he held together a team rife with expiring contracts (including Josh Smith) to win 44 games. He won’t face those challenges this season, as the Bucks made it a summer priority to add character vets – a number of them with previous experience in Milwaukee – to complement the young core. Ridnour, Delfino and Pachulia are all former Bucks and known quantities who figure to be good soldiers for Drew, while Butler has made no secret of his excitement to be coming home and will be expected to play a key role both on the court and in the locker room.

Whether Drew can turn the Bucks into a consistent winner isn’t a question that will be answered this season, and he certainly won’t be expected to work miracles immediately given the talent at his disposal. That’s especially true in a market where many fans are less interested in scratching and clawing to 38 wins and more interested in seeing the Bucks develop young talent and position themselves for the 2014 draft.

That tension between development and winning figures to be Drew’s biggest challenge heading into camp and reflects the larger challenge facing the Bucks going forward.

BUCKS SALARIES AND ANALYSIS

2013-14 SEASON PREVIEW INDEX

Frank Madden is the managing editor of Brew Hoop and has covered the Milwaukee Bucks for SB Nation since 2007.You can follow him on Twitter @BrewHoop.