Photo via Twitter / Bucks
The opening week of contests for the Milwaukee Bucks went, frankly, less than ideal.
On the opening night of the season, the team suffered a heartbreaking loss in Boston. A late miracle bank shot from Jayson Tatum, followed by a very late foul and subsequent missed free throw from Giannis Antetokounmpo sealed the deal in a hard fought game. A statement win on Christmas Day in Milwaukee was crucial, with the Bucks blowing out the Golden State Warriors, 138-99. Sunday night saw a return trip to the east coast, with fatigue likely playing a factor in the 130-110 loss to the New York Knicks.
There are some bright spots in the early games, though. Donte DiVincenzo is off to a hot start for his third season in a newfound starter role. New additions Bobby Portis and D.J. Augustin are also showing signs of meshing with the team’s offense early, which is promising. Things won’t get much easier for Milwaukee in the second week of the season, though. Check out what’s in store:
Tuesday & Wednesday, Dec. 29 & 30 at Miami (6:30 p.m., Tuesday on TNT, Wednesday on NBA TV)
The Bucks will close out the 2020 calendar year with a pair of games against the very team that eliminated them in the playoff bubble in Orlando last season. Before ultimately falling to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Heat were a team ready to shock the world, winning a pair of playoff series as underdogs. This time around, of course, more respect will be paid to a team that contains Marquette alum Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Milwaukee native Tyler Herro.
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The storylines write themselves for these games, which are also Milwaukee’s first back-to-back games of the 2020-21 season. The Bucks will play on consecutive nights six times this year, so we’ll get an early look into the team’s conditioning against a more than formidable opponent.
Friday, Jan. 1 vs. Chicago (7 p.m., Fox Sports Wisconsin)
After their east coast run, the Bucks return home on Friday for their first 2020-21 meeting with the Chicago Bulls. While Chicago has a young roster, led mainly by Zach Lavine, there are a few future stars for the Bulls heading into Friday’s game. Otto Porter Jr., Thaddeus Young and Denzel Valentine all have the capability of taking over a game on any given night, and with the Bucks reeling from a tough early schedule, this is certainly not a contest to take lightly. Hopefully a win here will get things trending in the right direction for the rest of 2021.
