‘DiVincenzo’s criteria’ ; how Bucks Donte DiVincenzo is an under the radar X factor
When Malcolm Brogdon left the Bucks for the Indiana Pacers before the 2019-20 season started, there was a gaping need to be filled.
Milwaukee filled the need with experienced veteran Wesley Matthews, who has done well enough this season.
The Bucks will need to look to the future at the shooting guard position, as the verteran stop gap isn't the future guard of the franchise.
White Donte, Big Ragu
Introduzione, Donte Divincenzo, nicknamed the 'White Donte' and 'Big Ragu'.
DiVincenzo's was selected 17th overall by the Bucks in the 2018 draft out of Villanova.
At the 2018 NBA combine he recorded the highest vertical leap logging a 42-inch leap.
He's rookie year however came to a disappointing end after 27-games due to a foot injury.
The disappointment has since been forgotten. He had a fantastic sophomore year fast becoming an integral part of the Bucks rotation.
The X factor
DiVincenzo has added a level of versatility and energy to complement the likes of superstars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton.
His vicious dunks, acrobatic finishing at the rim and timely jumpers
Divincenzo’s versatility and tirelessness came to fruition during his first meaningful minutes of the NBA this year.
Back in November during the fifth game of the 2019-20 season, he was given his first meaningful opportunity of the season to date playing 17 and a half minutes of action.
Donte contributed to Milwaukee outscoring the Orlando Magic bench 57-32 scoring 14 points from 5-for-11 from the field and added three rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block.
So far this season Divincenzo has averaged 9.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists from 23 minutes per game.
He's been given more responsibility in his sophomore year starting 22 out of 59 games.
His box score contribution might not immediately stick out but his numbers don't paint a full picture of the impact he has when on the floor.
A future star?
Divincenzo ranks 93rd in player efficiency (12.61) Hollinger PER 145th 15.03 which is average
But RPM (Real Plus Minus) and PIPM (Player Impact Plus-Minus) comes closer to capturing DiVincenzo’s real.
Donte ranks 13th in the NBA in RPM (Real Plus-Minus), 3rd best out of all shooting guards behind only James Harden and Luka Doncic.
His PIPM quite remarkable on the year.
And although Giannis is through the roof RPM limits Giannis impact by - Drawing on advanced statistical modeling techniques (and the analytical wizardry of RPM developer Jeremias Engelmann, formerly of the Phoenix Suns), the metric isolates the unique plus-minus impact of each NBA player by adjusting for the effects of each teammate and opposing player.
Even our MVP is in on Donte
Donte DiVincenzo's intangibles is what sets him apart and why he's flying under the radar as an X factor.
Even reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is
"He's extremely tough, extremely tough, we saw that last year but we've seen it even more this year," said of DiVincenzo.
In Divincenzos breakout game against the Magic as the Bucks would outscore the Magic by a staggering 34 points in his time on the floor.
Budenholzer agrees that this innate ability the 23-year-old possesses is not often seen,
particularly this early in a professional career.
"I would say very rare and I think it's a great observation of how he impacts the game," Budenholzer said at a recent practice.
DiVincenzo is the same person who 31-point explosion for Villanova in the national title game 79-62 win over Michigan
Before Donte I’m 17-18 the Bucks generates fewest bench points averaging 27.7
Final four most outstanding player
Tenacious defended worked with retired guard Kirk hinrich in preseason “ he’d compete with me, he’d push me in that way rather than just telling me what to do in a drill”
Defensive intensity and knock down shooting
“I’m just coming in here wanting to work and I just want to fit in. That’s my main goal”
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My passion for sports led me to create Wolfgang Sports in 2017 as a way to connect American & British sports culture. My writing is driven by a fascination for sports culture focusing on popular culture, rookie players, data analytics and sports card collecting.