Opinion: The Bucks are in Trouble

[DefenseWinsChamps]

... and they know it.

This is something I've thought for a while now, but there is a serious problem with their roster construction.

Almost every player that plays rotation minutes for them is among the slowest in the league: Middleton, Illyasova, Lopez, Lopez, Matthews, Korver, and Hill. Giannis is obviously amazing, but Bledsoe is very inconsistent, especially in big games. That just leaves players like Pat, Brown, Wilson, and Bender.

All that means that they are forced to shoot a lot of jumpshots and they really struggle to defend. Against quick teams like the Cs, they are hoping they can lure ball-handlers into no-man's land and get swallowed up by the Lopez brothers at the rim. The problem is that if the opposing team is able/willing to move the ball, it gets everyone out of position and a step slow.

Come playoff time, this team will struggle to defend and will struggle to hit their shots without another player to stir their offense.

It's not like the team has a lot of upside either. It will just get worse next year. Another year older. Another year slower. Without any youth to help Giannis.

The only concern I have as a Celtic fan is if the Bucks make a trade for Chris Paul. They would be a much tougher out this year, but they would also get older and their window would get smaller. The Bucks actually don't have many trade packages that could work. A crazy 4-1 or 5-1 with Bledsoe and Hill as the core pieces would get it close. The other option is to trade Middleton.

I really think we might be seeing the beginning of the end of Giannis in Milwaukee.

[saltlover]

Do we have a #BucksPick watch thread yet?

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Do we have a #BucksPick watch thread yet?

Do we have a Bucks pick? From what trade?

[Fafnir]

I don't think they're in trouble, they are just unlikely to win 60 games this year. Bledsoe/Lopez had such amazing years repeating that feat was always a stretch.

Just playing Matthews/Korver less and giving DJ Wilson, Dante DiVincenzo, and Pat Connaughton their minutes would help the issue you highlight.

[mqtcelticsfan]

Do we have a #BucksPick watch thread yet?

Do we have a Bucks pick? From what trade?

The Baynes trade.

[saltlover]

Do we have a #BucksPick watch thread yet?

Do we have a Bucks pick? From what trade?

Trading Baynes and pick #24 to the Suns.  Protected 1-7 this year, unprotected next year.

[Fafnir]

Do we have a #BucksPick watch thread yet?

Do we have a Bucks pick? From what trade?

We have a top 7 protected Bucks pick from the Suns as part of the Baynes trade.

[Moranis]

Fantastic win for the C's.  Great comeback, but the C's needed a comeback because the Bucks were up 19.  The Bucks then forgot how to shoot.  Some of that was the C's defense of course, but they also just missed a lot of wide open shots.  It happens.  I wouldn't write their demise quite yet. 

[DefenseWinsChamps]

I don't think they're in trouble, they are just unlikely to win 60 games this year. Bledsoe/Lopez had such amazing years repeating that feat was always a stretch.

Just playing Matthews/Korver less and giving DJ Wilson, Dante DiVincenzo, and Pat Connaughton his minutes would help the issue you highlight.

Two things: 1) I don't think Bud intends to play young guys, and 2) Are we sure they are really better options? Aren't those guys fringe NBA players?

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Do we have a #BucksPick watch thread yet?

Do we have a Bucks pick? From what trade?

Trading Baynes and pick #24 to the Suns.  Protected 1-7 this year, unprotected next year.

Noice. Here's to hoping we get the 8th pick this year!

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Fantastic win for the C's.  Great comeback, but the C's needed a comeback because the Bucks were up 19.  The Bucks then forgot how to shoot.  Some of that was the C's defense of course, but they also just missed a lot of wide open shots.  It happens.  I wouldn't write their demise quite yet.

I think the game was emblematic of the issues I already saw, but these are things I noticed before last night. It's not just from one game.

What if last season was the anomaly, not the new norm?

[saltlover]

I don't think they're in trouble, they are just unlikely to win 60 games this year. Bledsoe/Lopez had such amazing years repeating that feat was always a stretch.

Just playing Matthews/Korver less and giving DJ Wilson, Dante DiVincenzo, and Pat Connaughton his minutes would help the issue you highlight.

Two things: 1) I don't think Bud intends to play young guys, and 2) Are we sure they are really better options? Aren't those guys fringe NBA players?

Connaughton has his moments against us in the playoff series, so he’s probably not a fringe player.  Not great, but showed he can give 15-20 useful minutes.  Ultimately management would probably like to see the other two get some minutes, as both of their rookie contract options were picked up for next season.

I think they’re really going to miss Brogdon.

[mqtcelticsfan]

One thing that was striking last night in the second half is how much trouble they had when we doubled Giannis. They camp out so predictably along the perimeter that all we had to do was rotate around so that the closest kickout options weren’t alone and by the time it got around to the guy we left open they weren’t open anymore.

[Fierce1]

Bucks were in trouble the moment Celtic killer Malcolm Brogdon left.

[JBcat]

I don't think they're in trouble, they are just unlikely to win 60 games this year. Bledsoe/Lopez had such amazing years repeating that feat was always a stretch.

Just playing Matthews/Korver less and giving DJ Wilson, Dante DiVincenzo, and Pat Connaughton their minutes would help the issue you highlight.

I think it would too, but what gets lost in all this I think losing Brogdon is a very underrated loss.  Mirotic also played pretty well for them last year.