If you have watched the Milwaukee Bucks for most of this season, then you may have found yourself watching two different teams at times. It’s been yet another roller coaster ride so far but the Deer have managed to find themselves at 12-10 in the first week of December. While most feel their record could be a bit better, their latest three-game win streak suggested that things were starting to click before running into a buzz-saw last night against the league’s best Boston Celtics.
The “I Will @#$% You Up” Game
Despite not having Rudy Gobert in the lineup, the odds were still stacked against the Bucks, who still have yet to win in Utah since 2001 after falling 121-108 to the Jazz back on November 25. Rookie sensation Donovan Mitchell poured in 24 points on 9-16 shooting including 6-10 from three to go along with four rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Mitchell, who sits near the top of the Rookie of the Year chase, caused problems all night for the Bucks, who struggled to get out to three point shooters with the Jazz knocking down a season-high 18 triples.
The frustration didn’t take long to set in as Giannis Antetokounmpo, who led Milwaukee with 27 points and 13 rebounds, got into a heated exchange with Bucks assistant coach Sean Sweeney during a timeout. Footage shows Giannis getting up off the bench and mouthing some NSFW language at Sweeney, who apparently called out the superstar for slowly getting back on defense after turning the ball over, which resulted in an easy two points for Utah.
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No matter the situation or who’s right or wrong, you never want to see a player boil up like that, especially at a coach. As bad as it looked, however, it may have been a blessing in disguise for a team that has had its share of ups and downs defensively this season. Of course Giannis downplayed the incident in an interview at practice the next day saying that he and coach Sweeney are brothers and arguments like that happen between brothers all the time. This one just happened to be caught on tape for the world to see.
Ramping Up the Intensity
After the Sweeney and Giannis incident, the Bucks went on to win three straight games with beat downs over the Kings and Trailblazers to wrap up the west coast swing followed by another victory over the Kings at home on Saturday night. During those three wins, Milwaukee not only found some rhythm offensively but the defense improved as well. They averaged 11 steals per game and held their opponents to 94 points per game. It’s hard to pinpoint the sudden improvement but a lot of it can be simply attributed to more consistent effort. I understand they played the lowly Kings twice, but that same Kings team had just beat the defending champion Golden State Warriors before hosting Milwaukee.
The win that stands out the most was their dominating vicotry over a then 13-8 Blazers team in the Moda Center in what seemed to be one of their most complete games of the season to date. They were clicking on all cylinders defensively and when that happens, the Bucks can turn into a very good-looking team on the other end. Not only did they limit the star backcourt of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum to a combined 33 points on just 14-36 shooting including 3-13 from downtown, the Deer were able to find some offensive rhythm as their new big three of Eric Bledsoe, Khris Middleton and Giannis combined for 71 points while each eclipsed the 20-point mark. Not to mention, the Bucks did a lot of damage inside the arc with 46 points in the paint and outscored Portland 16-0 on the fast break.
Frustration in Bean Town
If you just looked at the box score and saw the Bucks lost 111-100 last night on the road to the best team record-wise in the Eastern Conference, you might not think too much of it. A couple things stood out though, starting with the defense. There’s so much talk about scheme lately with the Bucks defense and how head coach Jason Kidd and Sean Sweeney keep switching or adjusting to find better ways for the Bucks to succeed. While people point to the way they switch against certain teams or they don’t switch and play straight up depending on matchups, a lot can be said about discipline. To me, when you watch NBA basketball for a full season, it comes down to two things on a given night, energy and effort. That goes for both ends of the floor.
I know it sounds so cliché but at the same time it really could be that simple. When the Bucks play well defensively, it’s because they come out with more energy and effort than the opposing team on that given night. Last night in Boston, the Celtics showed more energy from the tip and jumped on the Bucks to take a 20-point lead. To their credit, the Deer came back after halftime and fought their way back behind Giannis Antetokounmpo’s massive 40-point MVP effort to get within six points late in the game but they ran out of gas against Kyrie Irving, who closed out the game with ease as part of a solid 32-point night. Watching Irving last night gave me clarity as to why he wanted out of Cleveland. Not only does he want to thrive as the lead man on his own team but he also wants the opportunity to win an MVP award in the process. There was no way that was going to happen while playing in King James’ shadow. Here’s what coach Kidd had to say post game following the loss to the Celtics.
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It’s easy to pick out the lack of energy or effort defensively, but they seemed to be missing a key component last night and it came from the center position with a combined zero points on 0-10 shooting and just four rebounds in 29 minutes from John Henson and Thon Maker. Not being able to rely on the center position puts a lot more pressure on the rest of the team including Giannis, who was forced to play the five for nearly a full quarter last night.
While those stats aren’t terrible to the naked eye, it’s going to be difficult for this team to win a lot of games when they don’t get much help from their bigs. The Bucks are blessed to have a 7’0” freak like Giannis who can play every position, but he can’t do everything and expect to win on a nightly basis, especially against a team like the Celtics.
Big Three Brewing in Cream City?
Speaking of Giannis “do it all” Antetokounmpo, a lot of questions have been raised about who is going to help him carry the load from night to night. Khris Middleton has been an obvious number two and despite some inconsistencies, he’s capable of putting up 20-30 point efforts on any night while even dropping 40 twice this season. We’ve seen what Eric Bledsoe can do defensively to help this team, but after 12 games, the chemistry he is developing with his Giannis and Khash offensively is becoming evident as of late.
I mentioned it briefly above with their performance against Portland, but the trio has averaged a combined 72.5 points over the last four games. With the bench struggling to find production beyond Malcolm Brogdon, it’s a great sign when you see your stars recognize that and take matters into their own hands. That being said, there will be times when one or more of those guys will have an off night and they will need to find production elsewhere. Hopefully the Bucks can weather the storm until they get Jabari Parker back in a couple months. That’s easier said than done at this point.
With more rumors swirling around about potential trades to beef up the front line (cough, cough, DeAndre Jordan), the only thing the Bucks can control is the next game on their schedule. With a three-game home stand this week featuring rematches against Detroit, Dallas and Utah before taking three days off, the only hope is they can find the energy and effort needed to get some much-needed wins as we approach the Holiday season.
