Milwaukee Bucks 2013–2014

[homer]

Missing Delfino and Ersan.

[ELCABALLO45]

This is going to be strange but I am actually sorta excited to watch the Bucks this year. Between all the young talent on this team (Knight, Sanders, Mayo, Henson, Greek Freak) and how bad the east is, I don't think they will be that bad.

[fondybrewfan]

I am certainly intrigued enough to sit down and watch the opener tonight. But I can see myself being turned off rather quickly if they are truly horrible and/or aren't playing the young guys enough. I have a feeling that Giannis is going to barely see the floor once Ersan comes back. Is Drew really going to give Khris freaking Middleton minutes over Giannis?

[yoshii8]

This is going to be strange but I am actually sorta excited to watch the Bucks this year. Between all the young talent on this team (Knight, Sanders, Mayo, Henson, Greek Freak) and how bad the east is, I don't think they will be that bad.

 

I'm always excited to watch, but I think the east has improved a lot since last season. The Wizards, Cavs, Bobcats are no longer terrible, and the Bulls, Pacers and Nets are much improved. I think it's going to be hard to make the playoffs. I think we'll finish as the 10th seed in the east.

[Outlander]

Laughable starting lineup of Knight/Mayo/Middleton/Butler/Sanders. I really don't see why so many are optimistic about them winning, changing my prediction to 27 wins.

[JJHardy7]

Vegas has/had the Bucks project with the 7th worst record in the NBA (over/under 28.5 wins). Looks like if some things go the losing way we could potentially have the 3rd worst record (5 games away).

 

http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/10/28/5037930/vegas-odds-nba-over-unders-2013-14

 

I am very interested to see folks reaction to the article below. Here's the interesting part regarding the merits of tanking:

 

Van Gundy's point is well-taken, but the main reason I've changed my stance is a conversation I had Tuesday with David Berri, a professor of economics at Southern Utah University and one of the biggest critics of the NBA's ever-popular tanking tactics. Berri says losing to win is a mathematical long shot and points out that only twice since the lottery was instituted in 1985 has a team that had the No. 1 overall pick gone on to win the championship. Both times, it was the San Antonio Spurs.

 

Berri has worked the numbers since the lottery was instituted and has figured out that only 10 percent of the teams who win 25 games or less in a season are contenders within five years. In contrast, 20 percent of "mediocre" teams – those teams that record between 34 and 49 wins – are contenders five years later. In his blog at Freakonomics.com, Berri defines a contending team as any team that wins at 66 percent of its games.

 

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2013-10-29/sports/os-mike-bianchi-nba-tanking-1030-20131029_1_orlando-magic-strategy-jeff-van-gundy

 

I tend to agree with the information above, but not entirely. I think the main thing the Bucks need to do is find a stud and build the team around that stud. It could be via tanking, trade, dumb luck (most likely at this point), etc. The most frustrating aspect of the Bucks is the fact that it often appears they have no plan. I'm excited for the start of the season. I don't think the team will be great, but we may actually have a team of guys that actually don't mind playing in Milwaukee and that could be refreshing.

[LouisEly]

Anybody else surprised that Pachulia is only 29 years old?

 

They replaced 11 of 15 players as well as their coach. It's going to be ugly in November and December as they get used to playing with each other. But the core of the team (Sanders, Mayo, Ilyasova, Henson, Knight, GA, Udoh, Wolters) is still all under the age of 27.

 

The high roster turnover should allow them to lose enough games to be in the lottery hunt while still maintaining a young core. If they can lose enough games to get in the lottery and get lucky in the lottery they could be set up for a nice future; but as long as there are franchises in LA, Miami, New York, and Texas, and Cuban still owns a team it is extremely unlikely the Bucks could ever win a championship no matter what they do.

 

The Bucks aren't a great team, but unfortunately the fans of Orlando, Charlotte, Atlanta, Detroit, Toronto, Philadelphia, and Boston are saying the same thing about their team too.

[young guns]

Just as long as they don't do anything stupid at the trading deadline to chase the playoffs.

[patrickgpe]

i watched the 1st half and 4th quarter last night. i think this team has some potentional but they made way too many mistakes. Wolters looked good in the 2nd half. The freak is more raw that even I thought he was. I think this team will be fun to watch, just very frustrating. they showed the ability to really up their defense when falling behind instead of in past years when all they really could do is start reining down 3's to try to catch up.

[ELCABALLO45]

What a great effort last night in Madison Square Garden. If you would of told me that the Bucks would of lost it's starting PG and half the team would be in foul trouble and down 25 at half and we would at one point have the lead in the 4th I would of called you crazy. This Middleton thing is going to bother me however, no idea why he is getting big playing time. Anyways, cheesehead tv does a thing called "The good. the bad. and the ugly" after every Packer game, so here is mine after last nights loss in New York.

 

The Good

 

- Zaza Pachulia

 

Zaza did exactly what the Bucks hoped he would do and more. After Larry Sanders got himself into foul trouble, Zaza came in and played extremely well for Milwaukee. Posting a double-double and played tough, physical defense. So far so good for Zaza.

 

- Erson Illyasova

 

It's a shame Illyasova's ankle was bothering him, because in the few minuetes he did played, Ers played well. Shot 5 of 6 from the field and had 3 steals. Bucks need him to get healthy, fast.

 

- The 2nd half

 

Down 25 to one of the better teams in the east, the Bucks outscored the Knicks 52-34 in the 2nd half. Defense played extremely well, forcing turnover after turnover. Larry Drew mixed in some match up zone at times, and the Bucks after a terrible 1st half showed the good defense into transition offense we were hoping for. That team is exciting to watch, hope we see it more often this year.

 

The Bad

 

- Nate Wolters

 

I feel bad for putting Wolters in this group. He really wasn't suppose to play that much, but when Ridnour was ruled out and Knight went down the call went to Wolters. And in fairness, he did play a ton better in the 2nd half. However, Wolters looked completely over matched at times. He got lost 2 or 3 times in rotation on defense and shot the ball very poorly. Hopefully these are all just growing pains, but its hard for me to get excited for Wolters as anything more then a back up PG.

 

- Bucks half court offense.

 

The Bucks are going to try and score more in transition this year and you could see why. In the half court offense, this team is going to be ugly at times. Turned over the ball waaaay to many times. And a few times late in the game, had to settle for terrible shots with the shot clock running out. Obviously losing Knight hurt, but man oh man was it ugly at times last night.

 

- Giannis Antetokounmpo's playing time.

 

I can't put just Larry Drew in here, because I beliveve he did to many good things last night to just put in him here. (See, 2nd half defense). But not playing your first round pick more then 5 minutes after the flashes he showed in pre season is very odd to me.

 

The Ugly

 

- Larry Sanders

 

5 fouls. 0-5 from the field. Do I really need to say more?

[rwa12]

I agree with your for the most part Caballo. They showed some heart in coming back. I like your "Goods", and agree with your "Ugly", not sure I do on the "Bad". Wolters wasn't great, but like you said, to go from 12th man to basically starting PG, is a big leap. He wasn't at Syracuse last year, he was at SDSU. The jump in level is astonishing. If he's going to be useful, it's going to be a few years down the road. I didn't have a huge problem with The Freak's minutes. He looked raw out there, a little unsure. Skiles wouldn't have even played him. I think Drew is trying to figure out who's comfortable out there. I too am puzzled by Middleton. I think they saw something in him that might not be there. He was the "sleeper" of the Knight trade for them. It's hard to judge the game last night without Knight. Not sure how much differently it would have gone. It looked like Caron really enjoyed his homecoming, and if we're going to watch guys who are past their prime, might as well be someone who wants to be here! Mayo didn't stand out a ton to me last night.

[fondybrewfan]

Middleton showed next to nothing last night; hopefully Drew comes to his senses and takes him out of the starting lineup. The team looked awful in the 1st half but you have to give them credit for competing in the 2nd half.

 

The half court offense looked horrible; no one on the team really has that 1 on 1 capability. Sanders seems to have had his head up his rear end the entire preseason and through the 1st game; he has been entirely unimpressive so far. Perhaps he is putting too much pressure on himself. Hopefully it is not the other scenario where he got paid and is now taking it easy.

 

Giannis got 3 fouls in 4 minutes and I didn't really notice him too much. He should get a pass since its his first NBA game. I would like to see him get at least 10 minutes a game so he can get used to the NBA.

[Outlander]

Wolters getting a ton of minutes was one of the only good things from last night, don't want to see guys get hurt but hopefully he continues to play. Stinks that Henson isn't getting more playing time, hopefully Butler shows something and can get traded to a good team, same thing with ZaZa. Wouldn't be surprised if this is a very frustrating season for Sanders, but he still can be a big part of the future. It is early but Giannis needs to play more down the road if they want fans to pay to see this team play.

[brwrsfan]

John Henson playing only 17 minutes irritates me too.

[ELCABALLO45]

Did anyone else notice Henson on the bench last night? When he wasn't going in he looked like his dog died. However, I do want him playing more.

[FVBrewerFan]

Even more troubling is Sanders was on the bench most of the game, and Sova's minutes were limited. You would think Henson would have even more minutes. As for Middelton, I don't see the harm in finding out if you have something there. Isn't that what this season is about? Giannis doesn't need a ton of minutes every game at this point. He's in the picture, you know that already. Middelton though, you don't know if he fits any long term role. He did have one pre-season game where he went off, so I'm sure that's what they see. Just like so many guys, can he consistently score? Probably not, but they have him so may as well find out for sure.

[JoeHova]

I know it's only been a game and a half, but I think it's fair to say that this team is going 0-82.

[JoeHova]

Haha, what a comeback! Amazing what not having Gary Neal playing PG will do for a team.

[Baldkin]

Haha, what a comeback! Amazing what not having Gary Neal playing PG will do for a team.

 

Or, not having 3 guys on the court who don't seem to care at all in Neal, Butler and Mayo?

[JoeHova]

Or, not having 3 guys on the court who don't seem to care at all in Neal, Butler and Mayo?

 

That helped too, for sure.

[Outlander]

I agree Baldkin, I can live with the losses if Wolters, Henson and G are playing key minutes like they did against Boston.

[ELCABALLO45]

Wow what a comeback. I almost turned the game off until I told myself its Game 2, just watch the rest of it and maybe Greek Freak will do something. Just a great team effort tonight. Say what you want about Neal, but he hit a couple big shots early in the game or that would of been a 30 point game at half. Butler hit the game tying 3 and the huge steal before Wolters hit both FT's. Just great comeback.

 

The Good

 

- Nate Wolters

 

A night after having a rough first career game (mostly 1st half), Wolters responded with a great effort off the Bucks bench Friday Night. Wolters scored 14 points. Dished out 6 assists and hit some big shots late. Great performance by Wolters tonight.

 

- John Henson

 

Henson only played sparingly in the opener Wednesday, but boy did he come to play Friday. Henson scored 14 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and was active altering shots on the defensive end. Henson's left hand is a thing of beauty on the low block. Please play him more LD.

 

- Zaza Pachulia

 

For the 2nd game in a row, Zaza finds himself in the good section. Zaza once again came off the bench and provided big minutes for the Bucks. He was active all over the place, and he scored 20 points in the process. I know a lot of people were low on Zaza when we got him, but so far through 2 games it's hard to argue with his production.

 

The Bad

 

- OJ Mayo

 

Mayo went 2 of 9 from the floor. Led the team in turnovers with 4. It's only 2 games but so far Mayo looks slow and can't create his own shot. He also looks to get frustrated way to easily. Hopefully he turns it around.

 

- Larry Sanders

 

Well, at least he is not in the ugly section like last game. However, Sanders once again looked lost on the offensive side of the ball. Only had 3 rebounds. The only part of keeping him in the bad section was his 4 blocked shots. Come on Larry.

 

- Bucks 1st half

 

That was almost as ugly as Wednesday. The only difference was they didn't have the Knight excuse. If the Bucks keep putting themselves into holes like they have the past 2 games, this will be a 10-72 win team.

 

The Ugly

 

- Bucks half court offense

 

Just brutal. Pass around, pass around. Mayo chucks it.

[LouisEly]

Middleton showed next to nothing last night; hopefully Drew comes to his senses and takes him out of the starting lineup.

 

Well, your options at the 3 are Middleton, Butler, or GA. I understand the desire to develop GA, but if you play a guy too much who is so raw and isn't ready and he plays poorly it can hurt his confidence which can ruin his development. I think the best thing for GA's development right now is to limit his minutes so he gets some PT but isn't put in a position where his play is criticized as being a reason for a negative outcome.

 

So that leaves Middleton or Butler, in which case I'd rather see what the 22-year-old Middleton can do.

[Baldkin]

Middleton showed next to nothing last night; hopefully Drew comes to his senses and takes him out of the starting lineup.

 

Well, your options at the 3 are Middleton, Butler, or GA. I understand the desire to develop GA, but if you play a guy too much who is so raw and isn't ready and he plays poorly it can hurt his confidence which can ruin his development. I think the best thing for GA's development right now is to limit his minutes so he gets some PT but isn't put in a position where his play is criticized as being a reason for a negative outcome.

 

So that leaves Middleton or Butler, in which case I'd rather see what the 22-year-old Middleton can do.

 

He started Middleton at the 4 on opening night, which was just stupid.

[jjkoestler]

I had the game on, but didn't pay much attention until the end of the 4th. Why was Sanders on the bench?