Bufkin was drafted with the hopes that the combo guard could develop into the perfect backcourt sidekick for Trae Young. Yet, after two years, Bufkin has played in just 27 regular season games and performed at a lackluster level. With his tragic injury luck, there is reason to believe he could improve after having a full healthy season to build rhythm.
Despite this reason for optimism, fans were ready to give up on the young guard after Atlanta unexpectedly cobbled together one of their best offseasons as a franchise, propelling the team to the top of the Eastern Conference in preseason rankings.