Milwaukee Bucks History: Top 10 Shooting Guards In Franchise History
The Milwaukee Bucks have had some great two guards over the years, but who are the 10 best shooting guards in franchise history?
Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The Milwaukee Bucks have been blessed with some outstanding wing players throughout the years, with many of their best players playing at either the shooting guard or small forward spots.
Having looked at the top 10 point guards to have suited up for the Milwaukee Bucks last week, this week it’s the turn of Milwaukee’s shooting guards to be put under the microscope.
There’s arguably no position that has seen greater talent throughout the history of the franchise either.
With a mixture of elite scorers, all-time great defenders, sharpshooters and versatile all-rounders, Bucks fans have been lucky to see such incredible talent play in front of them at the shooting guard position over the years.
Weighing up production, consistency, longevity and achievements as Bucks, I’ve put together a list of the top 10 shooting guards in franchise history.
Let’s get down to it!
10. Craig Hodges
One of the greatest three-point shooters in the history of the game, although most people’s abiding memories of Craig Hodges won’t come from his time with the Milwaukee Bucks, he was a good contributor in his three-and-a-half seasons with the franchise.
Hodges, of course, went on to win two championships as a sharpshooting reserve for the Chicago Bulls but was also famed for his contribution to the NBA’s Three-Point Contest. Hodges appeared in the contest eight times, finishing as a winner on three occasions and a runner-up twice.
For Hodges’ three full seasons as a Buck, the franchise won an incredible average of 55.3 games per season. As a starter/occasional Sixth Man throughout that span, Hodges’ influence and the space he created for his teammates was a key contributing factor to that success.
For his time as a Buck, Hodges averaged 10.5 points, 3.4 assists, 1.8 rebounds and 1.0 steals. Perhaps more importantly, he shot 47.8 percent from the field, 40.4 percent from distance and 85.6 percent from the charity stripe.
9. Khris Middleton
The hope for both Middleton and fans of the Milwaukee Bucks will be that he’s still only starting out when it comes to his journey and role within franchise history, but the reality is that he’s already leaving his mark regardless.
It now seems laughable to consider that Middleton could ever have been a second round pick and then a throwaway addition in a deal centered around Brandon Jennings, as it’s players like Middleton that NBA teams have grown desperate for in the present day.
With a low key demeanor and a really well-rounded game, the Charleston native can and will do a little bit of everything. That versatility alongside his defensive intelligence and three-point shooting touch makes him a valuable commodity in the current NBA landscape.
To date, Middleton is preparing for his fourth season with the team having averaged 14.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting 40.5 percent from behind the three-point line. If he continues playing as he has been and his teammates develop, the 25-year-old could well be the Bobby Dandridge for his generation of Bucks teams.
8. Alvin Robertson
I alluded to former Bucks point guard Eric Murdock being nicknamed the “Man of Steal” in ranking point guards last week, but really, if anyone is deserving of that title it should be Alvin Robertson.
Robertson was one of the most gifted defensive guards ever to play the game, and joined the Bucks having already previously been named a Defensive Player of the Year. In his time in Milwaukee, All-Defensive First and Second Team appearances would be added, as well as a season as Steals Leader.
Robertson wasn’t just a defensive player though. The Ohio native was also a confident scorer, while his passing and rebounding meant that triple-doubles were always in play. From his time in San Antonio, Robertson is even the owner of the only quadruple-double to include 10 steals in NBA history.
If Robertson could have joined the Milwaukee Bucks just a few years earlier he could have pushed an excellent team over the line, but as it was, he came to Milwaukee at the tail end of those consistent 80s teams. When Robertson was traded Milwaukee’s commitment to a reset was confirmed, but before that he averaged 12.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.7 steals during his time as a Buck.
7. Ricky Pierce
Throughout the history of the Bucks, offense hasn’t come much more instant than it did with Ricky Pierce. Twice a winner of the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award, Pierce in a Bucks uniform caused opposing teams nightmares throughout the 80s, as there was no relief when the starting unit took a seat.
Often that type of player is all volume and little efficiency when it comes to scoring, see recent winners Jamal Crawford and Lou Williams, but Pierce was rare in possessing the full package of offensive traits.
Pierce started only 10 percent of the games he played in as a Buck, but was often more productive than many of his teammates.
During his time in Milwaukee, Pierce averaged over 51 percent from the field on averages of 16.5 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Fittingly, Pierce came back for half of his final season, allowing him to retire with the team where he played at his peak.
6. Paul Pressey
Pressey could just as easily have slotted in at small forward here, which when you consider he’s perhaps best known for playing a point forward role speaks volumes about the versatility that the former Tulsa Golden Hurricane offered.
Going with his classification on Basketball Reference as a shooting guard for the majority of his career in Milwaukee, instead Pressey makes this list. At a time when the likes of Moncrief and Marques Johnson negated the need for a traditional point guard, Pressey was one of a number of influential creators at Milwaukee’s disposal.
Having been selected by the Bucks as the 20th overall pick of the 1982 Draft, Pressey spent the majority of his career with the team. Throughout that time, Pressey often selflessly played a role that suited the team more than it did him. In spite of being a skilled scorer, it was Pressey’s passing that was most valuable to Don Nelson‘s Bucks squads.
In his time as a Buck, Pressey averaged 11.9 points, 5.6 assists and 4.3 rebounds, while making the playoffs in each of his eight seasons with the franchise.
5. Jon McGlocklin
Perhaps the most loved figure in Bucks history due to his constant presence in various capacities since the foundation of the team right up to the present day, Jon McGlocklin has seen and done it all throughout his involvement with the franchise.
Johnny Mac joined the Bucks having been drafted in the Expansion Draft that saw the team come into existence, and in spite of having failed to make a major impact elsewhere, he hit the ground running with an All-Star appearance in the team’s very first season.
McGlocklin would continue as a key member of the Bucks throughout the remainder of his time with the team, as even though his numbers dipped by virtue of the stars he had to share the ball with, his sharpshooting was vital to Milwaukee’s championship winning team.
McGlocklin would continue with the Bucks through to the latter part of the 70s before stepping into a broadcasting role first on radio and later television for the team. As a Buck, Johnny Mac averaged 12.6 points, 3.2 assists and 2.4 rebounds on over 50 percent shooting from the field.
4. Brian Winters
Often overlooked in Bucks history, the fact is that there’s a reason Brian Winters’ jersey hangs from the rafters in the Bradley Center. Much like Johnny Mac, Winters was a sharpshooter who drove his team on to great success.
Having come to Milwaukee as one of the key pieces of the return received by the Bucks in exchange for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Winters immediately played at an All-Star level and went on to do similar for the remainder of his NBA career.
Winters played eight seasons in Milwaukee, utilizing his smooth shooting stroke to score in volume throughout. Often attempting upwards of 17 shots per game, Winters’ production gave a big boost to the Bucks post-Kareem and allowed them to kick on to form a new contender.
Overall for his time in Milwaukee, Winters averaged 16.7 points, 4.3 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game.
3. Michael Redd
Having played almost 600 regular season games for Milwaukee and starring as one of the team’s best players for the majority of that time, Redd has quite the legacy as a Buck but it could have been even greater if not for injuries.
A second round pick in the 2000 NBA Draft, in spite of a strong career in college with the Ohio State Buckeyes, expectations for Redd would never have been for him to go on to play at the level he ultimately did in Milwaukee.
Redd played for the team for 11 seasons, in the middle of that spell becoming the type of elite scorer that has rarely been seen throughout the history of the franchise. Redd’s skill arguably deserved better teammates in that time, but he was the perfect fit in terms of personality for the Milwaukee fanbase.
During his time with the team, Michael Redd averaged 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steals.
2. Ray Allen
A player with a valid case for the top spot, if not for a trade with Seattle that’s still mourned to this day by Bucks fans, who knows what Milwaukee and Ray Allen could have gone on to achieve together over the years that followed.
In his time in Milwaukee, Allen developed from an explosive athlete with a good scoring touch to an elite shooter who deserves to be in the conversation among the greatest shooting guards ever to play the game.
The players around him obviously played a big part in the success experienced by Milwaukee in 2001, but there’s no doubting that without Allen that team could not have come close to the heights they reached.
For his all too brief time in Milwaukee, Ray Allen averaged 19.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.3 steals while making over 40 percent of his three-point tries.
1. Sidney Moncrief
Drafted as the fifth overall pick in the 1979 NBA Draft, Sidney Moncrief went on to spend 10 seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks and during that time he was the driving force in one of the most successful eras the franchise has experienced.
Moncrief was very much the complete player, allowing the Bucks to build a steady foundation for success on both ends of the floor. A noted lockdown defender and two-time Defensive Player of the Year, Moncrief set the tone on defense while having the skills necessary to run the show from either of the backcourt spots also.
At the peak of his powers as a Buck, Moncrief rolled off five straight All-Star appearances and a spot on the All-NBA First Team in 1983. That individual play fueled the Bucks to the most consistent run the franchise has seen, as Milwaukee won their division in Moncrief’s first seven seasons only falling below 50 wins once in that time.
Moncrief was forced to retire early due to injury problems, but for his time as a Buck he averaged 16.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
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