Milwaukee Bucks: No. 47 Draft Pick Finally Shows Up in Summer League, Flashes Offensive Promise

Markovic Must Show Defensive Growth To Earn Time with Milwaukee Bucks

Markovic has come off the bench in each of the first three games. He didn’t contribute much in the Summer League opener versus Denver, in the box score or otherwise. He missed his only two shot attempts, both threes, and went 0-2 at the line. He also committed a pair of turnovers and just didn’t seem to have his feet beneath him.

He followed up an improved performance on Saturday (5 points, made his two free throws) with an even better one Sunday: 14 points on 4-8 from the field and 5-5 from the line, 2 rebounds and 2 assists. He earned double the minutes and looked a lot more comfortable.

Around the rim he also demonstrated a soft touch when called for, flicking in an and-one off the window. He’s shown the rangy offensive game and natural feel that the Bucks drafted him for.

Especially on defense, though, he has some work to do. The team knew that coming in and it’s proven to be a manifest flaw. Bucks reporter Eric Nehm shared his analysis:

Smaller players blew by the 6-foot-11 Serbian several times. As Nehm observes, Markovic doesn’t pick up his feet nimbly enough to stay in front. Defending a fast-break, he had decent position to begin with but then seemed caught off-balance as the driving Clippers guard slipped easily by him for a coast-to-coast lay-in.

Markovic has flashed the tools, but his defense is still in an early stage of development. The Bucks have one Summer League game remaining. Regardless of how it goes, from what he’s shown so far in his first eye test for Milwaukee, defensive shortcomings will likely limit his time with the Bucks next season. It’s a small sample size, but further growth in the G League or possibly overseas looks like a prerequisite to inserting Markovic in NBA action.