Milwaukee Bucks 2018 - 2019

[FVBrewerFan]

Yeah, Mirotic isnt fitting in yet. Especially with Brogdon being out now, hope he finds some rhythm and a role before the playoffs start.

 

Not having Brogdon might be affecting this team more than we think.

 

It's been one game. I do think it will hurt, hopefully they can keep their #1 overall seed, get through the 1st round and then have Brogdon back.

 

As far as the Bucks being a marginal playoff team without Middleton, that's ridiculous. That would mean they're at or below .500 and that's not going to happen. I agree the way the rules are set-up they need to keep him, but it's crazy to think they go from the best record in the NBA to a marginal playoff team in the East without Middleton.

[HiAndTight]

Yeah, Mirotic isnt fitting in yet. Especially with Brogdon being out now, hope he finds some rhythm and a role before the playoffs start.

 

Not having Brogdon might be affecting this team more than we think.

 

It's been one game. I do think it will hurt, hopefully they can keep their #1 overall seed, get through the 1st round and then have Brogdon back.

 

As far as the Bucks being a marginal playoff team without Middleton, that's ridiculous. That would mean they're at or below .500 and that's not going to happen. I agree the way the rules are set-up they need to keep him, but it's crazy to think they go from the best record in the NBA to a marginal playoff team in the East without Middleton.

 

 

I'll bet Brodgon is back for the 1st round of the playoffs. This is nothing like the injury he had in college. This is an injury that's mostly just a matter of pain tolerance. The problem is that it's worse when you come back after not having worked out for a while. So hopefully he can come back, play a few minutes in the 1st round, and then be ready to go for round two.

 

It has only been one game, and in that game, we played a Sixers team that hit almost 50 pct from the 3 point line and has arguably the best starting 5 in the game(I'd argue they don't, but it's good). And it was competitive.

 

Just get that 1st seed, beat up on Miami or...is it Orlando that could be the 8th seed? Haven't looked in a while. And then get ready for a tough 2nd round series.

 

But of course losing a 90/50/40 starter who is one of our best finishers at the rim and a really nice, physical defender is gonna hurt this team. Maybe we get lucky and the Jordan of Delaware really flashes in the next 5 weeks and we have a better idea of what he'll look like in the future!

[HiAndTight]

If DDV, Hill, and Brown weren't also injured, I would be a lot less concerned. Fortunately this isn't the same foot that Brogdon had surgery on in college. That doesn't necessarily mean it's not related (he could be compensating), but it's still somewhat reassuring. Having to come back from a long layoff in the middle of the playoffs is not good though.

 

 

It's also not NEARLY as big of an injury as the one he suffered in college. If it was another Navicular break, particularly to the same foot, that'd be a huge concern.

 

The concern on this one is it's just going to be painful. He'd been playing with it. I think he'll come back on the more optimistic side of the time frame, but it's not a good injury to come back and jump back into a tough series with(though I don't know what is).

 

Not sure we'll be able to count on him being able to get those 2-4 drives a game where he gets an angle and puts a nice move on the guy and takes it to the hole. I think he's going to be more of a catch and shoot guy in the playoffs and his defense will also struggle a bit. He can match up against more physical 2 guards, but he'll likely really struggle with quick PG's. Boston is the team that I'm really concerned with right now. I think I'd like to see them in the 3rd seed and the Sixers as the 4. Of course we could get lucky and maybe Indy will take care of the Celts in the 1st round! How nice would that be?

[HiAndTight]

Another terrible game for Middleton today. Really getting tired of watching him dribble around for 8 seconds and then pulling up for a bad shot. Or holding the ball for 5 seconds and then chucking up a random shot completely out of rhythm. Shots like that just don’t go in very often. He really does not fit the offense Bud has implemented. Middleton tries to do too much way too often and leads to a lot of empty possessions on the offensive end. I’m really hoping/looking forward to him being gone after this season.

 

 

I get he hasn't looked good as of late...or has been hit or miss and he does run ISO a bit, but he's our 2nd best player. 3rd at worst. You're actually HOPING the Bucks lose him this off-season? It's not like hoping the Packers move on from a guy who's been one of their best players but you just don't think fits. If they lose him, they are replacing him with a very late 1st round pick or with Tony Snell likely stepping into the lineup.

 

Middleton's a very good player and the Bucks can't afford to lose him. I do wish he'd take fewer deep 2's, wish he'd pass more instead of taking that contested 12-16 foot turnaround, but he FAR more of an asset than a negative.

[FVBrewerFan]

Another terrible game for Middleton today. Really getting tired of watching him dribble around for 8 seconds and then pulling up for a bad shot. Or holding the ball for 5 seconds and then chucking up a random shot completely out of rhythm. Shots like that just don’t go in very often. He really does not fit the offense Bud has implemented. Middleton tries to do too much way too often and leads to a lot of empty possessions on the offensive end. I’m really hoping/looking forward to him being gone after this season.

 

 

I get he hasn't looked good as of late...or has been hit or miss and he does run ISO a bit, but he's our 2nd best player. 3rd at worst. You're actually HOPING the Bucks lose him this off-season? It's not like hoping the Packers move on from a guy who's been one of their best players but you just don't think fits. If they lose him, they are replacing him with a very late 1st round pick or with Tony Snell likely stepping into the lineup.

 

Middleton's a very good player and the Bucks can't afford to lose him. I do wish he'd take fewer deep 2's, wish he'd pass more instead of taking that contested 12-16 foot turnaround, but he FAR more of an asset than a negative.

 

That's the problem though, that's Middleton's game. When he's on, he can't miss those kind of shots. He can't just be a 3 point shooter, his avg just isn't good enough. And he's not much of a drive into the lane guy either. At his best, he's a guy who can knock down that 2 point jumper, and at time get hot from 3.

[coolhandluke121]

 

That's the problem though, that's Middleton's game. When he's on, he can't miss those kind of shots. He can't just be a 3 point shooter, his avg just isn't good enough. And he's not much of a drive into the lane guy either. At his best, he's a guy who can knock down that 2 point jumper, and at time get hot from 3.

 

All true at this point. I was sincerely hoping he would embrace more of an off-ball role in Bud's offense, but that doesn't appear to be in his muscle memory bank or something. He's not the 2nd-best player on the team anymore. Bledsoe has been much better pretty much all year, because elite pg defense is extremely valuable in today's NBA (even if all-star berths don't recognize it). I think Brogdon has finally passed him at this point as Khris continues to put up mediocre efficiency. Lopez is more of a unique x-factor, though we saw against Philly how his lack of mobility is going to be an issue in the playoffs.

 

That said, it's just not like other sports because of some unusual features of the NBA collective bargaining agreement. Khris would have to play even worse on a consistent basis before it's in the Bucks' best financial and personnel interests to let him walk, because you're not allowed to spend the money on someone else.

[Baldkin]

That's the problem though, that's Middleton's game. When he's on, he can't miss those kind of shots. He can't just be a 3 point shooter, his avg just isn't good enough. And he's not much of a drive into the lane guy either. At his best, he's a guy who can knock down that 2 point jumper, and at time get hot from 3.

 

He's 12th in the league in percentage for guys who shoot more than 6 3's a game. He is an elite 3 point shooter.

[FVBrewerFan]

That's the problem though, that's Middleton's game. When he's on, he can't miss those kind of shots. He can't just be a 3 point shooter, his avg just isn't good enough. And he's not much of a drive into the lane guy either. At his best, he's a guy who can knock down that 2 point jumper, and at time get hot from 3.

 

He's 12th in the league in percentage for guys who shoot more than 6 3's a game. He is an elite 3 point shooter.

 

He's also 108th in the NBA in 3P%. Yea, that's a misleading stat, but so is a fabricated "6 3s a game." How about using 4 or 5 a game? Because then he doesn't look as good. He is not elite.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Probably because at 4-5 attempts a game you're getting guys who don't specialize in 3PFGA. Once you go under 6, you're at #37 in 3PFGA. So 6 seems like a pretty reasonable place to draw the line. There are 36 such players and Mids is 12th, which seems pretty solid to me.

 

This is one of those things where most people are going to undersell the guy they watch play more often than the others.

[FVBrewerFan]

Probably because at 4-5 attempts a game you're getting guys who don't specialize in 3PFGA. Once you go under 6, you're at #37 in 3PFGA. So 6 seems like a pretty reasonable place to draw the line. There are 36 such players and Mids is 12th, which seems pretty solid to me.

 

This is one of those things where most people are going to undersell the guy they watch play more often than the others.

 

I'll grant you that part. When Baldkin pointed that out, he is better by comparison than I would have expected. But putting up 4+ 3P a game is still a pretty high volume. Just a matter of where you want to cut if off. All that said, I still don't think that's elite. For example, I would consider Brogdon elite. Fewer attempts, but maybe that's why he's elite- better recognition of what/when is "his shot."

[adambr2]

When exactly did Bledsoe turn into Ethan Happ at the FT line?

[OnTheBlack]

 

That's the problem though, that's Middleton's game. When he's on, he can't miss those kind of shots. He can't just be a 3 point shooter, his avg just isn't good enough. And he's not much of a drive into the lane guy either. At his best, he's a guy who can knock down that 2 point jumper, and at time get hot from 3.

 

All true at this point. I was sincerely hoping he would embrace more of an off-ball role in Bud's offense, but that doesn't appear to be in his muscle memory bank or something. He's not the 2nd-best player on the team anymore. Bledsoe has been much better pretty much all year, because elite pg defense is extremely valuable in today's NBA (even if all-star berths don't recognize it). I think Brogdon has finally passed him at this point as Khris continues to put up mediocre efficiency. Lopez is more of a unique x-factor, though we saw against Philly how his lack of mobility is going to be an issue in the playoffs.

 

That said, it's just not like other sports because of some unusual features of the NBA collective bargaining agreement. Khris would have to play even worse on a consistent basis before it's in the Bucks' best financial and personnel interests to let him walk, because you're not allowed to spend the money on someone else.

 

I think Middleton has struggled a bit as of late making him look even worse, but you're pretty much right about everything. He's not a great fit in this system with this team...but he's not an awful fit. He's not a true #2 scorer, but he's a better option than anyone else we're likely to get. To me he almost reminds me of a modern day Glenn Robinson offensively with better handles. He likes that 18 footer a bit too much, but as you keep saying, it's not like it's another sport where if you let Middleton walk you can sign someone else even for 15 million. It's all or nothing and with Giannis becoming eligible to sign his extension next summer, it has to be all.

 

When he's playing well, he can be a really, really good player. He was the X-factor that pushed the Boston series to 7 games last year despite being pretty sick toward the end of it scoring 25 on 60 pct shooting and taking it to everyone they put on him.

 

 

IF they do have to move on from Middleton, I at least hope they can do a sign and trade and get at least something useful back. I can't really find anyone who seems to be interested in signing a guy like Middleton save for MAYBE Chicago who could send us something back in a sign and trade and the only guy who's salary would be close would be Otto Porter...and I don't know why Chicago would want to give up Porter except that they could sign Middleton and then go after a Max player still the following year as long as Porter turns down his 28 million dollar team option.

 

Of course I'd probably rather have Porter than Middleton, so the Bulls would be better off just keeping Porter and waiting to see if they can even sign that Max FA before doing anything....

 

Zach Lavine is also a higher paid guy the Bulls have that they'd likely prefer to dump...just not sure them dumping him on us does us any good.

 

Any sign and trade scenario's that you could see working? It'd have to be a team that doesn't have the cap room to give him what he wants and we almost certainly wouldn't get much back in return.

 

The Thunder are another team I've read that loves Middleton, but Steven Adams is the only guy who's salary would match up and...again, they're not going to send Adams to Milwaukee to take back a lesser version of Paul George.

[OnTheBlack]

When exactly did Bledsoe turn into Ethan Happ at the FT line?

 

 

Bledsoe can be frustrating at times. He can look like a superstar at times, taking the ball to the rim with that explosive first step and then finishing some really tough, contested layup's..and then he can kinda disappear for a while.

 

Don't get me wrong, he's been a revelation for the Bucks this season, finally having a consistent role in a good system so he can fulfill his potential, and his 7 second defense of Buddy Hield at the end of that Sac game was about as impressive man D as I've seen this year. Still, as good as he looks, how does he go 1-6 from the line in any game? Chalk that up to a fluke.

[coolhandluke121]

Any sign and trade scenario's that you could see working? It'd have to be a team that doesn't have the cap room to give him what he wants and we almost certainly wouldn't get much back in return.

 

It's hard to think of sign-and-trades that work. For one thing, the NBA has gotten a lot stricter about sign-and-trades. Teams were abusing Bird Rights in sign-and-trades, and they put a stop to that.

 

Then you have the fact that the Bucks would be looking for immediate "win now" help, but any team trading for Khris is doing the same so your interests are in conflict. It would typically be easier to sign and trade Khris to a wannabe contender for an expiring contract and a draft pick, which doesn't make sense when your contention window is wide open... and wannabe contenders don't like giving up the type of players who can help a team win now, which is what the Bucks would want.

[FVBrewerFan]

When exactly did Bledsoe turn into Ethan Happ at the FT line?

 

The same time Giannis turned into Brogdon at the line.

[Mr Southpaw]

Any sign and trade scenario's that you could see working? It'd have to be a team that doesn't have the cap room to give him what he wants and we almost certainly wouldn't get much back in return.

 

It's hard to think of sign-and-trades that work. For one thing, the NBA has gotten a lot stricter about sign-and-trades. Teams were abusing Bird Rights in sign-and-trades, and they put a stop to that.

 

Then you have the fact that the Bucks would be looking for immediate "win now" help, but any team trading for Khris is doing the same so your interests are in conflict. It would typically be easier to sign and trade Khris to a wannabe contender for an expiring contract and a draft pick, which doesn't make sense when your contention window is wide open... and wannabe contenders don't like giving up the type of players who can help a team win now, which is what the Bucks would want.

 

If they move on from KM, the expiring contract and draft pick might be worth more than the nothing they get if he sign outright.

[coolhandluke121]

 

If they move on from KM, the expiring contract and draft pick might be worth more than the nothing they get if he sign outright.

 

Yes. If he really wants to leave and some other team wants to pay him, you can't stop him. But the fact that you have no leverage is also the very reason you won't be able to persuade some team to give you an expiring contract and draft pick in the first place. It would be a much less likely scenario than some other team just signing him outright. Teams who can sign him in free agency usually don't have much incentive to give up a draft pick to do so, unless they think they can swing a matching-salaries deal for him and keep their cap space for another free agent. Lots of moving parts in that scenario though, and it gives the Bucks back their leverage.

 

I also don't see why the Bucks would settle for that with the best record and differential in the league, and with the purported super-teams all looking so vulnerable. Khris has been a disappointment, but has not been so bad that it's time to get rid of him for future assets when you're a contender now.

 

By the way, the Lakers are the Knicks West and have been for a while. Look at what Russell, Lopez, and Randle are doing for other teams. Look who they have instead of them. Dear god.

[RollieTime]

X-Rays on Mirotic’s thumb revealed a sprained thumb and a fracture. Mirotic will be listed as out without a set timetable yet as to when he will return.

 

The injury bug is sure hitting the Bucks hard. Hopefully they can get mostly healthy by the time the playoffs come around. Otherwise it could be a very disappointing early exit in the playoffs.

[RollieTime]

X-Rays on Mirotic’s thumb revealed a sprained thumb and a fracture. Mirotic will be listed as out without a set timetable yet as to when he will return.

 

The injury bug is sure hitting the Bucks hard. Hopefully they can get mostly healthy by the time the playoffs come around. Otherwise it could be a very disappointing early exit in the playoffs.

 

Looks like he will be missing 2-4 weeks with a fractured left thumb.

[homer]

Eesh, they'd been pretty lucky with the injuries so far this year. Well, time for Wilson to step up.

[coolhandluke121]

Pretty important injuries at a really bad time.

 

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[OnTheBlack]

Any sign and trade scenario's that you could see working? It'd have to be a team that doesn't have the cap room to give him what he wants and we almost certainly wouldn't get much back in return.

 

It's hard to think of sign-and-trades that work. For one thing, the NBA has gotten a lot stricter about sign-and-trades. Teams were abusing Bird Rights in sign-and-trades, and they put a stop to that.

 

Then you have the fact that the Bucks would be looking for immediate "win now" help, but any team trading for Khris is doing the same so your interests are in conflict. It would typically be easier to sign and trade Khris to a wannabe contender for an expiring contract and a draft pick, which doesn't make sense when your contention window is wide open... and wannabe contenders don't like giving up the type of players who can help a team win now, which is what the Bucks would want.

 

It was damn near impossible. I went through and looked at the teams that have reported to have interest in Middleton, Dallas, the Lakers, the Nets, the Pacers, all these teams...and most of them have cap room and any of the players who have contracts that you could use, guys like Myles Turner for example, why the hell are the Pacers signing Middleton to trade Turner?

 

 

As for trading for an expiring contract and a draft pick, both are assets. They're clearly not assets equal to Middleton, but they are assets. I'm not breaking news to you here, but that's better than just losing him outright. They're probably gonna need to get lucky and find a player like a D'Aneglo Russel TYPE who has a lot of talent and upside, but does something stupid making him available. The Nets have done a respectable job adding some assets after putting themselves in a Bucks-like situation by trading away their draft picks for the foreseeable future.

 

I have a lot more respect for Horst after this season in dumping Henson, Delladova, turning Maker into Mirotic, so maybe I'm just being a pessimist, but I COULD see this Bucks team ending up in a Cleveland with LeBron type situation. A team that's just so hemmed in without anywhere to really go. Without any assets to trade that aren't vital to winning and over the luxury tax. If we win a title while doing so, I'll get over it, but we need to get REALLY lucky with our 1st this year and then hopefully find a way to move Snell and Ersan...both of which have SOME value, right? Erasn should at least with an expiring contract next year.

 

Of course if Giannis can end up hitting 35-38 pct of his 3's, he's gonna be so damn good, we'll be fine with the types of options available to us to add.

[OnTheBlack]

Pretty important injuries at a really bad time.

 

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Again, this team has been better than the sum of it's parts IMO this year because of two things, Coach Bud and their chemistry(which may be one thing).

 

Mirotic has to be back a few weeks before the playoffs IMO as he never really totally fit in yet, and I think Brogdon is smart enough that if he can just get on the floor for a few minutes at the end of the 1st round series, we'll be alright....but that's two pretty important guys going down at the wrong time.

 

Mirotic missed a bit of time last year as well and was still an elite player for the Pelicans during the post-season. We're gonna need both those guys at their best in order to get through the east.

 

 

Especially since DJ Wilson's looked so bad shooting the ball as of late. His shot which looked alright earlier this year has just looked ugly. He shot one vs the Lakers that I don't think ever went higher than 10 feet, 6 inches.

 

 

 

I do like them sitting Giannis. He shouldn't be playing more than 25 minutes a game the rest of the year IMO. Unless of course Toronto wins out and they need to win a couple games to clinch the top seed.

[adambr2]

#1 seed and HCA throughout the NBA playoffs is looking extremely likely. 3 games + tiebreaker up on Raps with 9 left.

[FVBrewerFan]

Congrats to Marques Johnson! Truly ahead of his time. Back then if he could have come out of UCLA after a year, if 3 pt shot was used like it is now, less physical game, etc. he would have been a no brainer for NBA hof.

 

So cool to see how much he appreciated having his number retired.