Bucks Validate Statement Win As Jabari Nears Return

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The roller-coaster ride that is the Milwaukee Bucks continues on as 2017 nears its end. After a rough three-game stretch with road losses to the New Orleans Pelicans and Houston Rockets squeezed around a home loss against the Chicago Bulls, the Deer responded in the most Bucks-like fashion by getting up for a big game against one of the league’s best. Giannis Antetokounmpo and company found a way to hold off King James and the defending Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center despite blowing a 20-point fourth quarter lead.  

That tweet may be from a year ago now but it couldn’t be more relevant when referring to this Bucks team. That was the case on Tuesday night as Milwaukee got behind the home crowd and used a huge 39-point second quarter to jump on the Cavs and built what seemed to be a comfortable lead. What they forgot was that this is the NBA and even at 33-years-old, LeBron James is still the best player in the league. Although James sat for the start of the fourth quarter, the Cavs reserves started a fierce comeback and eventually took a 107-105 lead with 5:11 left after a pair of back-to-back threes by former Marquette star DwyaneWade, who finished with 14 points on 4-6 shooting from behind the arc.  

What came next actually impressed me from this young Bucks team. As LeBron re-entered the game to continue what would have been an improbable comeback from most teams, the Bucks kept their composure and stayed in the moment as they rallied around their stars to close out the game. Malcolm Brogdon’s three out of the timeout not only gave Milwaukee the lead back at 108-107 but it was their first basket since the 10:49 mark in the quarter that saw them up 20 points. After a couple Bledsoe buckets and incredible plays from James on the other end, Milwaukee found themselves in need of a clutch basket and found Tony Snell for a transition three with under a minute left to take a two-point lead.

It was a true welcome back moment for Snell, who finished with eight points in 23 minutes while playing in his first game since December 6. Not to mention, Snell continues to prove why he was worth the 4-year, $46 million dollar extension he signed in the offseason as he is on pace to break the single-season franchise record for three-point percentage of 46.7% set by Dell Curry back in the 1998-1999 season. Snell is currently shooting what would be a career-high 46.6% from deep and an impressive 52.1% overall. As a matter of fact, Tony has never shot the ball better in his career since coming over in a trade last year from the Chicago Bulls for disgruntled point guard Michael Carter-Williams. In Chicago, Snell’s best season came when he shot just 37.1% from deep in 2014-15. To say he’s been a godsend to Milwaukee would be an understatement. It’s safe to say he’s transformed his career and found a solid niche within the Bucks’ system.  

Getting back to Tuesday, however, the Deer still had work to do. After a rare wide-open miss from Kyle Korver on the other end, Giannis came up with a big play by outworking King James for a loose ball and finished for a tough and-one bucket to take a five-point lead with five seconds remaining. The Greek Freak tallied 27 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and two steals while King James recorded a game-high 39 points, seven assists, three steals and an uncharacteristic seven turnovers. ICYMI, here’s a recap of the wild fourth quarter. 

Puzzling Decision 

After getting fouled with just over a second to go up two points, Khris Middleton, Milwaukee’s best free throw shooter at nearly 90% for the season, stepped up to the line to seal the game. He drilled the first and instead of burying the second to take a four-point lead, he clanked the second on purpose, which allowed LeBron to get the ball and throw up a desperation heave to tie the game. Despite a miss that was closer than it needed to be, I still found myself scratching my head and thinking what is coach Jason Kidd thinking? Why tell your best free throw shooter to miss and give Cleveland it’s only chance to possibly tie the game in that situation? If Middleton makes the free throw, Cleveland would have to rely on a four-point play to tie the game. All Milwaukee would have had to do is basically clear themselves from any Cavs player and allow them to take whatever shot they wanted.

I understand the probability of the Cavs making a full court shot to tie the game down three was unlikely but it still didn’t make sense by any means. A four-point lead makes those odds even more minuscule as it is. It may seem like no big deal since things worked out in Milwaukee’s favor, but it’s coaching decisions like this that have many questioning Kidd’s future with the Bucks organization. Imagine if that was a playoff game and LeBron or whoever in fact does come up with a game-tying shot that eventually leads to a loss. Here’s what Giannis had to say about the win, facing LeBron and the return of Tony Snell during media his availability Thursday. 

Take That for Validation  

As big of a win as Tuesday was, the only way to make it have that much more of an impact is to back it up with a solid performance in their next game. Back at home on Friday night playing in the first game of a back-to-back set against the Charlotte Hornets, the Bucks didn’t come out firing on all cylinders and it took quite an effort to get over the hump. With Giannis struggling to find a rhythm early, Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton made sure to pick up the slack and keep the Bucks within striking distance. Milwaukee used a 12-0 third quarter run to get themselves back in the game followed by a 9-0 run late in the fourth to close out the game in front of the home crowd. The marquee three combined for 78 points with Middleton’s 28 leading the way. Despite a stellar 32-point performance from Kemba Walker, Bledsoe matched him by pouring in 24 points, 10 assists, two steals, and a game-high three blocks including a huge one in the final minute on a Jeremy Lamb dunk attempt. The energy down the stretch was incredible and it’s a sign of a good team when they can find a way to take it to an extra gear to win these grind it out type of games. The defensive intensity made all the difference as the Deer fed off the home crowd to shut them down and turned to their MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, who found his groove to finish with a solid 26 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.

He’s Back?! 

The Bucks and their fans may have gotten the early Christmas present they’ve been waiting for as Jabari Parker was assigned to the Wisconsin Herd earlier this week to begin his rehab in preparation for his return. While he hasn’t quite been cleared for game action just yet, the 22-year-old coming off a second ACL surgery was able to practice and run some five-on-five. His conditioning is nowhere close to where it needs to be but that’s understandable at this point. The important thing is that he’s closer to getting back on the floor much faster than we expected. While it was a short stint with the G-League team, Jabari seems to be in good spirits. Parker, who averaged a career-high 20.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 51 games last season before getting injured, would add another dangerous dimension to the Bucks lineup and hopefully vault them to one the premier contenders in the Eastern Conference playoffs.  

Other Roster Moves 

While the Bucks welcomed back Tony Snell, Matthew Dellavedova, and Jason Terry back the active roster, they made a couple corresponding moves in the process. First, they welcomed back a familiar face as they signed 27-year-old guard Sean Kilpatrick to a two-way deal while releasing Gary Payton II, who was just about out of days on his two-way deal with the big league club. Kilpatrick’s name might ring a bell to some Bucks fans who follow the team year-round as the former Cincinnati product was the leading scorer for the Bucks Summer League team back in 2015. After playing with the Brooklyn Nets last season through the start of this season, Kilpatrick was waived after the team made a trade for Jahlil Okafor a couple weeks ago. The 6’4’’ shooting guard is known for his instant offense and showed it during his Bucks debut Friday night against the Hornets by knocking down a corner three on his first attempt en route to scoring five points in 10 minutes of action. should provide some much-needed outside shooting depth for this young roster.

Last but not least, Milwaukee sent 2017 first round pick D.J. Wilson to the Herd this week. While this may seem like a demotion, Wilson just hasn’t been getting many minutes with the Bucks so this is where the perks of having a G-League team so close to home comes in. It allows Wilson to get some much-needed run that should help build up some confidence going forward.  

Vote For Bucks 

The 2018 All-Star game won’t take place in Los Angeles until Sunday, February 18 but early voting has officially begun. It’s never too early to vote as Giannis looks to make his second-straight appearance. Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe should also get some consideration as the big three continues to take over the Eastern Conference.