Bucks back to basketball profile: Donte DiVincenzo

With the announcement of the NBA’s 22-team plan to close out the rest of the season, the Milwaukee Bucks are waiting for late July when play restarts in Disney World. It will undoubtably be an odd postseason experience, but if Milwaukee can be at its best in the bubble then it will be tough to beat.

As coach Mike Budenholzer and the Bucks prepare during this hiatus, FOX Sports Wisconsin will analyze each player on the Bucks and what their role might be in the playoffs.

This edition: Donte DiVincenzo

Previously: Brook Lopez | Khris Middleton

BACKGROUND

DiVincenzo’s stock blew up after his performance for national champion Villanova in the 2018 NCAA tournament and he was the No. 17 overall by Milwaukee that year. However, in part due to injuries, he played in only 27 games as rookie, averaging 4.9 points per game.

SEASON REVIEW

His 2019-20 season started slow, but he became a regular part of the rotation and even started 22 games, most of those coming in November and December. DiVincenzo is still getting over 20 minutes per game off the bench. In his last four games before the season was halted, he posted double-digit points in each.

One area in which DiVincenzo has made his mark this season is defense. His 100.1 Defensive Rating (per basketball-reference) is third in the NBA (NBA.com has it at 98.5, which is also third) while his 2.7% steal percentage ranks seventh.

HIGH ENERGY DONTE! #FearTheDeer pic.twitter.com/EeBoGmJs9U

— FOX Sports Wisconsin (@fswisconsin) March 10, 2019

STATS

GAME TO REMEMBER

As inferred above, DiVincenzo was getting into a groove in March. On March 4 at home in 119-100 win over Indiana, he tied his season high with 19 points – in just over 23 minutes – hitting on 3 of 6 3-pointers, and also contributed with seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block.

WHAT TO EXPECT THIS SUMMER

The Bucks can score with the best of teams, but their team defense has been elite this season and DiVincenzo is one of the reasons why. He missed out on last year’s playoffs due to his injured foot, so lacks in postseason experience. However, he figures to play his role off the bench as Milwaukee finishes up its season. And defense can step up even more in the playoffs, so we’d expect DiVincenzo to keep being a key factor for the Bucks.