The 2010/2011 version of the Milwaukee Bucks, with 8 new faces and half the roster injured and out of shape, there were certainly more questions than answers heading into the season. A slew of injuries, lack of chemistry and not being in game shape, lead to an early 2-5 record and dificult to assess the true measure of this team.

Now with players like Corey Maggette, Jon Salmons, Luc Mbah A Moute and Andrew Bogut getting healthy, the Bucks are on a 3 game winning streak to even their record at 5-5, and a clearer picture has begun to emerge, about who and what these new look Milwaukee Bucks are. Meet the cast of characters…

  Andrew Bogut:  (vs Warriors): 8/17/ 7 blocks.

                                                                             Season ave: 13/10 and 2.3 blocks.

Anchors the defense and does whatever team needs to get the win.

   John Salmons: (vs Warriors): 26 points / 4-4 from behind the arc, 4 rebounds. Held Stephen Curry to 7 points.

Last five game ave: 17/4/4 When healthy he is a tough matchup on both ends for anybody.

   Corey Maggette Season ave: 13ppg  Slowly has bought in to the Scott Skils system of playing defense, and play it hard all the time. Excellent off the bench. Early candidate for 6th man award.

   Brandon Jennings  (vs Warriors):  19/11 rebounds/ 6 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks.

                                                                                        Season ave: 16/6/5

Run’s the team very efficiently. Quietly plays an all around PG game.

   Drew  Gooden  (vs Warriors):  16/10/ 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 turnovers in 31 minutes.

He is starting to figure thing's out and understand his role.

   Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (vs Warriors):  6 /12/ 3 assists, 1 steal, and 0 turnovers in 39 minutes. Played excellent defense.

Has been playing outstanding defense, and the inspiration along with Bogut to getting other players to buy into putting 100% effort on defense all the time. The Bucks lead the league in scoring defense.

   Ersan Ilyasova His shot isn’t falling, but plays hard and did have a 17/10 this week.

   Keyon Dooling Nice defender with PG skills. Is also in the back court at times with Jenning, and that has been working well.

   Earl Boykins Pleasant surprise off the bench. Brings energy, experience, shooting, passing and change of pace behind Jennings and Dooling.

   Jon Brockman: Physical, scrappy hustle guy who will bang with other teams bigs.

Rookie Larry Sanders continues to learn.

Carlos Delfino (neck, concussion) and CDR (eye) are currently out another 2 weeks. Michael Redd and Darrington Hobson round out the 15 man roster.

So basically this year’s version of the Bucks is similar to last year’s team, only the names have changed as the talent has been upgraded.. The constant is Head Coach Scott Skiles and his willingness to sit players who aren’t committed to playing the defensive end, as Maggette has found out.

They play hard, they play unselfish, they are getting healthy and roles are being more defined. This is a solid team and getting better. Once they start shooting better, they will get 10 more points with no more effort. How cool will that be?

They play host to the best basketball team in the world in the LA Lakers on Tuesday. Should be a good one.

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 Milwaukee General Manager John Hammond (reining NBA Executive Of The Year) has struck quick this off season, going and getting instead of sitting back and waiting :)  In the process they rid themselves of two below average NBA players in Danny G and Charlie Bell.

As I put the current roster on paper, it is quite nice to be able to pencil in some names to positions, filling out the first ten guys on the team.

Bogut
Gooden
Maggette
Salmons
Jennings

Larry Sanders (15th pick in the draft)
Ersan
Luc
CDR
Hobson[ (Based on current roster, but FA expected to be signed.)

Delfino :  THREE POINT SPECIALIST.  We've upgraded fella's, that's a good thing.

It also protects us against injury.

REDD - 18,000,000 expiring.
JACKSON - Cut?

Gallon - Learn from the Joe Alexander mistake, send both Hobson and Gallon to the D league til the first of the year. Let them get major minutes and let the big league club figure out how the ten new guys that's been put together are going to fit.

Then after the Holidays if they are semi ready, bring one or both up to the bigs and incorporate them into the rotation, or let them sit and learn and practice with the team. If they sit all season they become like draft picks next season added to the club.

Couple that with a first round pick and two seconds in next years draft, plus Redd's 18 million comeing off the books, Milwaukee not only looks good today, but moving forward as well.

As for this year sign a decent backup PG, or trade for one.  Cut Darnell Jackdon's nongaranteed minimun salary, and go into the season under the cap with an open roster spot.

This is all subject to change, just my initial thoughts.

 

by upnorthfan on Thu Feb 25, 2010 8:28 am

After falling as far as seven games below .500 earlier this season, Milwaukee (28-28) has finally caught up to their elusive break even point with last nights 115-95 win against the New Orleans Hornets (30-28).

Center Andrew Bogut recorded his 27th double-double of the season with 26 points and 13 rebounds. At present Milwaukee finds itself as the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference, 1.5 games behind Chicago for the 6th seed and 3 games behind Toronto for the 5th seed.

So going forward, Miami, Toronto, Milwaukee, Chicago, and Charlotte all are within four games of each other for the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th spot in the NBA (Eastern Conference) post season.

Milwaukee has positioned them selves to be in the thick of it, at least for a while. When I did my Bucks mid season report card, they were two games in to the way they are playing now. I mentioned it then saying the Bucks are going to get on a roll here, and they did.

They have gone 10-3 over their most recent 13 games stretch, including winning four in a row on the road. A victory tonight against the host Pacers would put Milwaukee up above .500 for the first time since December.

Besides the All Star snubbed Bogut, the Bucks have relied on Luc Mbah A Moute, Carlos Delfino, Jerry Stackhouse, Luke Ridnour, Charlie Bell, Ersan Ilyasova, and Kurt Thomas, in addition to the Bucks new found backcourt of Brandon Jennings and John Salmons.

With the acquisition of Salmons and the subtraction of PF Hakim Warrick, Milwaukee has added a very good set of hands (Salmons) in to the rotation and have taken out a very bad set of hands (Warrick) out of the rotation. As a result, the Bucks are playing even faster and getting even better shots.

Offensively they are clicking. Defensively they will fight for almost forty three minutes a game and growing. Don’t look now but the Milwaukee Bucks look NBA organized, There is a lot of basketball yet to be played, but important basketball is the biggest difference this time of year.

It’s all been a dress rehearsal up until now. Now, for players like Ersan and especially Jennings, it’s time to put what you have learned into practice, and see how many games you can win in a shortened college schedule. The work Jennings has done at the PG position is phenomenal. His numbers may be dropping but he leads this team when he is out there.

He has blended in, defers to team mates, yet still plays with an edge and will take and hit the big shot. This kid is a gamer, and the job Skiles and staff has done with him has flown under the radar. Jennings is all about team. He has his team in the playoff hunt, playing important games every night. A team he has started for every game while playing 33 minutes a night, leading his team in scoring and sharing the ball so his team mates stay involved.

He and Bogut have improved by leaps and bounds their playing together chemistry.

Everyone else is just continuing to play together, share the ball, work when on the court, play smart, play tough, and see what happens.

It should be fun. Milwaukee BucksMilwaukee Bucks scheduleMilwaukee Bucks rosterMilwaukee Bucks statsBucks vs Pacers coverageBucks vs Pacers previewIndy CornrowsHornets vs Bucks coverage

A very big game looms tonight for the ( 27-28) Milwaukee Bucks.  A win tonight against the visiting New Orleans Hornets (30-27) and the Bucks will be back to even record wise, with 26 games to go after tonight.

 

Milwaukee just recaptured the 8th seed in the East.  They are 8-2 at home in 2010, and have won four in a row on the road.  They lead the league in FG attempts per game, meaning they play fast.  They are fifth in the league in rebounding, and their bench leads the Eastern Conference in bench scoring.

 

They inserted newly acquired John Salmons into the starting SG spot againainst New York, replacing the incumbent Charlie Bell, making them instantly more athletic.  Salmons, along with rookie PG Brandon Jennings makes for an exciting new Milwaukee backcourt.

 

Gone is big man Hakim Warrick, traded to Chicago as part of the trade that bought us Salmons.  His departure leaves the PF position to be manned by two Milwaukee young guys, Ersan Ilyasova and Luc Richard Mbah A Moute.

 

Add another somewhat newcomer in Jerry Stackhouse, whom the Bucks just picked up as a free agent just under a month go, and they Bucks have gotten more athletic on the fly.

 

Add Carlos Delfino into the mix of Salmons and Stackhouse at the SG and SF positions, that is a nice trio of wing guys that can cause matchup problems on both sides of the ball.

 

Anchored in the middle of it all is center Andrew Bogut, coming off his most recent outing of 24 points, 20 rebounds and 5 blocks.  Bogut currently holds the leagues longest streak of blocking a shot at now 20 consecutive games.  Bogut is second overall in blocked shots and climbing, having blocked 5 shots in each of his last three games.

 

Then this leaves us with the PG position where another young buck in Brandon Jennings (with the same nickname), leads the team at the controls.

 

For the amount of work he does for his team, most importantly running the whole dam show, I think although his shot and scoring has dropped off, he has done an outstanding job with all the responsibility he has in running things for a team in the playoff chase.

 

Having Salmons will help him because he is much more talented than Bell, giving Jennings what he has always needed this year, a talented running mate out top.  He has that now and it should take some of the pressure off of young Jennings, and now he can be a third scoring option behind Bogut and Salmons as opposed to the first scoring option he had become.

 

The less workload should drive Jennings and the team back to success.

 

Check em out.  Not only are they fun to watch, they will give you an honest days work.

 

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Hi fella's, Say, I am in a debate and need your help.  I say not only was Dave Parker nicknamed The Cobra, but Ken Griffey SR was as well.  Am I right about Griffey?

 

I am sure I remember Kurt Cowdy and Tony Kubeck call him the Cobra.  If have a link to help me verify it that would be helpful.  I appreciate your time :)  All answers are welcome, even if to say I am wrong.

 

Good luck this year.

 

Thanks.

   

                                                       Milwaukee Bucks (17-24) Mid Season report.

The Bucks shot out of the gate the first 11 games of the season, going 8-3 and setting the NBA on alert that this franchise was becoming “relevant” once again. Benefitting from a six game home stand, several available practice days, and a red hot rookie in PG Brandon Jennings, the early buzz league wide was all about Milwaukee.

Since that surprising start, the Bucks have fallen on hard times, going 9-21 the remainder of the first half of the season, and wondering “what if” their situation would be if only they would have won any number of the ten games they lost by 3 points or less.

Below is a synopsis of their most major contributors thus far.

Andrew Bogut (15/10) is having a solid, yet inconsistent season. The former number one over all pick has picked up his game defensively, leading the league in offensive fouls drawn (31) and sixth in the league in blocked shots at 2.14 per game.

Offensively, he is getting more shot attempts per game (13.4 shots per game compared to 9,8 career average). He is more comfortable down low, but still seems however to want to defer to team mates than take the shot himself.

He has trouble with bigger heavier opponents, while having learned to dominate smaller 4/5’s in the league, He is not an all star player yet, but could be in the near future.

Brandon Jennings (18/6) the rookie PG certainly had his share of ups and downs the first 41 games (all starts) of his career. Early returns had him head and shoulders above the rest of his rookie class, but since the beginning of the New Year he has steadily fallen back with the pack.

Slight of frame and never lacking in confidence, Jennings has been putting up shots at an alarming rate while shooting just 38% from the field. His shot just is not dropping from ten feet and closer, the same shots that netted him 55 points against Golden State in game seven of his career.

He is open mostly when he does take the shots; they have just stopped falling for him. Once he can learn from his successes and failures of his rookie season, Jennings will become an elite PG in this league. For now, it is this writer’s opinion he needs to go to the bench for awhile and watch as veteran PG Luke Ridnour is having his best season.

Luke Ridnour (12/4) is shooting 50% from the filed, and is the most consistent player on the team. His toughness, defense and PG skills (4 to 1.4 assist to TO ratio) is what a team needs from their PG.


As team the Bucks went through a stretch where it seemed they had given up, teams were shooting over 50% from the field on them, they were getting behind by 20 points or more in several games, and the chemistry was non existent.

Milwaukee did lose SG Michael Redd to injury, but Redd wasn’t totally healthy this season when he was on the court, still recovering from a left knee patellar tendon injury sustained last January.

The Bucks short comings this season overall can be traced to two things, and both are intertwined with each other,

Number 1, Milwaukee as a team has not been able to knock down open jump shots, and secondly, they lack NBA talent. They have players such as Charlie Bell, Kurt Thomas and Hakim Warrick playing major roles, but who should not be major contributors on a viable playoff team.

The Bucks are still in the playoff hunt, but that speaks more about the weakness of the watered down Eastern Conference than it does about the quality of team Milwaukee is.

Going forward, there are some noticeable things taking place, they seem to have the effort back on defense, they are once again sharing the ball (but not making shots), and Bogut seems to be coming around more consistently.

Milwaukee in the future needs to target a talented big man to play alongside Bogut, because as it stands now he is all alone in trying to handle other teams two and sometimes three big men.

For now though it seems they may stick around awhile longer fighting for the 7th or 8th seed in the EC, but I don’t think they will there at seasons end. On this board prior to season starting I predicted 34 wins, and with 17 wins now, they are on pace for just that.

Chicago, Charlotte and Toronto are all better than they are IMO, and the Knicks and Pistons seem to want their say in how it all plays out as well.

 

 

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There has been a common theme throughout this early season for the (8-3) Milwaukee Bucks, and it was never more evident than in the Bucks 103-98 victory over the host Memphis Grizzlies (4-9) on Saturday night.  The games founder had team basketball in mind when he first nailed that ole peach basket on the side of a bulilding.  He would be proud of how the Bucks play under Head Coach Scott Skiles.

The Bucks have been playing unselfish to say the least. Take last nights game for example. Milwaukee’s rookie sensation Brandon Jennings led all scorers with 26 points, including 12 each in the third and fourth quarters as the game was hanging in the balance.



Yet there were four other Bucks who deserved the Player Of The Game honor more so than he, and Jennings would be the first one to tell you that.

Kurt Thomas (in the absence of Andrew Bogut) played a solid 31 minutes, scoring 8 points and grabbing 10 rebounds and helping solidify the middle against the Grizzlies imposing front line.

Charlie Bell played 40 minutes of hell defense, knocked down five huge three’s in route to a 19 point night.

Then there was Luke Ridnour, being a second ball handler to Jennings, moving the team fast and with precision. In 33 minutes he had 12 assist with no turnovers. to go along with 13 points.

But none of them is my POG. That honor goes to Ersan Ilyasova, who is more and more reminding me of a poor man’s Kevin McKale. He uses his length to maximum advantage; he can rebound or keep a ball alive.



He has more range than McKale, but doesn’t have McKales post up game. I see similarities. Ersan finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, an 3 assist, and played hard and physical defense all night long on whoever he was guarding.

He is getting more and more comfortable all of the time. He knocked down two more 3’s, forcing teams to come out and guard him.

On the flip side, Bucks fans take note; Hakim Warrick is a cross between Dan Gadzuric and Tim Thomas. He isn’t a smart player, his hands are suspect, and he just makes too many mistakes, all the while having everyone drooling over his athleticism.

It’s fools gold and I am not buying, nor should you. Yes he will have a game here or there, but you can’t count on it.

BTW, the “never count on Danny G” rule still applies. He had an opportunity to really contribute and help his team, but here he is with 4 fouls in 9 minutes.

But Jennings and company put on a complete team showing last night, and it’s been common all through out the season. That’s why I say “These are not your Daddy’s Milwaukee Bucks”.

Next up is San Antonio on Monday.

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MILWAUKEE: The Milwaukee Bucks (7-3) was hosting the last game of their six game home stand, playing host to the Charlotte Bobcats (3-9).

The Bucks were playing their first game after hearing the news that center Andrew Bogut’s injury he sustained against the New Jersey Nets that Bogut would be out 2 to 4 weeks with a lower left leg injury.

Versatile all everything Luc Richard Mbah A Moute would also be missing his second game due to an ankle injury, and his staus remains day to day. With SG Michael Redd still on the shelf with a knee injury he sustained on Halloween night, it was becoming apparent the Bucks were going to be asking even more of their prized rookie, PG Brandon Jennings who for the season is averaging 25ppg and 6 apg.



Jennings didn’t disappoint as he got his team kick started by scoring 17 first quarter points as Milwaukee jumped out to a 53-41 half time lead, keeping Charlotte at bay in the second half by not allowing the ‘cats to get any closer than 8 the rest of the way.

Charlotte was led by Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace with 22 points apiece.

Jennings finished with 29 points, 7 assists and 4 rebounds in 40 minutes of action. It’s the same story that has followed Jennings and the Bucks all season though, and that is the overall play of the entire team. Jennings gets everything within the flow of the offense.

So does Ersan Ilyasova, who is continuing his ascension up the ladder on the team list of important players with another solid performance (13/7).

In the last five games Ersan is averaging (13/8) and playing tough hard nosed defense and constantly keeping balls alive for others to grab offensive rebounds.

After an inauspicious start, Hakim Warrick came alive and had a nice game, finishing with 16 points and 9 rebounds in 31 minutes.

Luke Ridnour gets his shots within the team concept. He’s averaging 10 points in 21 minutes, often teaming with Jennings, providing a smart, heady, extra ball handler the Bucks need against pressuring defenses.

Carlos Delfino gets his within the flow as well. I love Delfinos toughness. He rebounds well, plays tough defense, and is very unselfish. His modest numbers 9 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assist in 40 minutes while playing tough defense is one of many unsung efforts Milwaukee has been getting from a variety of players all year these first ten games.

In the absence of Bogut, Dan Gadzuric and Kurt Thomas combined for 6 points and 10 rebounds in 38 total minutes between the two. They defended, didn’t hurt the team, and let everybody else do their part. Nice first game without Bogut for these two guys

Charlie Bell was once again steady, playing 32 minutes, 6 points, no turnover’s while defending Jackson. Jodi Meeks is continuing to get more comfortable everyday defending and rebounding and taking his shots within the flow as well.

The key to the Bucks success, and will be moving forward can be summed up in three words. TEAM. TEAM. TEAM. That’s how their winning, and Jennings, as a rookie deserves kudos for leading the way in a very humble manner.

His “airness” was at the game watching with a critical (and bloodshot) eye.

Next up is a road game at Memphis tonight, who got a combined 73 points and 29 rebounds from their starting frontcourt of Marc Gasol Rudy Gay and Zach Randoph in last nights 103-97 Grizzlies win at Philadelphia. This is a game we'll miss Luc and Andrew.

 

 

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There has been excitement in the air surrounding the play of not only rookie sensation PG Brandon Jennings (25/6 asst) of the Milwaukee Bucks (6-3), but the unselfish hard nosed effort of the overall team as well.

Milwaukee has been among the league leaders in all the top rebounding categories, perhaps until now. Adding to the growing list of walking wounded list that already includes Michael Redd, Luc Richard Mbah A Moute, and until recently Carlos Delfino, we can now add center Andrew Bogut to the list.

Bogut, the Bucks fifth year center through nine games, was averaging (16/9). The former overall number one pick hurt his left leg during the waning moments of the fourth quarter in Milwaukee’s 99-85 win over New Jersey at the Bradley Center on Wednesday last.

An MRI on Thursday revealed a “contusion”. He is expected to be out approximately 2 to 4 weeks. Bogut missed 43 games last season with a back injury, and in 2007/2008 he also missed 18 games due to a leg injury.

Not only will they miss his scoring and rebounding, but his defense, passing and leadership as well. In addition, Bogut was developing a very .nice on court relationship with Jennings in the pick and roll.

Replacing Bogut will be the Bucks top priority heading in to tonight contest at home against the Charlotte Bobcats (3-8). Options currently on the roster are backup center Dan Gadzurich, Kurt Thomas and Francisco Elson.



Gadzurich, the former UCLA Bruin is arguably the fastest center in the league from baseline to baseline, but he is also erratic. He doesn’t have good hands, seems to rush things in the half court, and is foul and turnover prone historically.

Bucks Head Coach Scott Skiles seems to have Gadz playing under control in limiting him to what amounts to five minute stretches spelling Bogut each half through the first nine games.

If Danny G plays major minutes, will he play within himself as he has this season, or will he revert back to his old, turnover prone, stone hands player Bucks fans have lived and groaned with for the last past seven seasons?

Kurt Thomas is another option. The 37 year old fifteen year veteran warhorse knows how to defend, is a wide body, and can knock down a nice short to mid range jumper. Thomas started the first two games this year, prompting Skiles to realize Kurt is “too slow to play with us”.

Francisco Elson has been inactive most of the season. He also is of average talent and limited offensively.

If the Bucks get in to a game of small ball they could opt to go with Hakim Warrick or perhaps even Ersan Iyasova in stretches. In any case it will take a small village to replace what Bogut brings to the table.

This exposes what I wrote about recently that Milwaukee goesn’t have a second Big next to Andrew. That should be General Manager Jon Hammond’s top priority this next off season.

But tonight and in the foreseeable future, Yung Buck3 (Jennings) may have to shoulder even more of the load than he is doing now. Redd isn’t due back for at least two more games, Mbah Moute is questionable for tonight.

So the likes of Ersan, Luke Ridnour, Charlie Bell, the disappearing Warrick, Jodi Meeks, Carlos Delfino, everyone top to bottom including Jennings will need to up their game until the calvary returns.



The Bucks will be facing Stephen Jackson twice in seven days, first with the Golden State Warriors, and now after being traded to the Bobcats. Jackson will be playing his third game with his new team while averaging 19 points and 45 minutes per game in two Charlotte road loses this week.

The Bucks would like to end their six game home (4-1 so far) with a win before heading out on a four game Southern Swing.

Tip off is at 7:30 CST

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The Milwaukee Bucks (5-3) play host to the winless New Jersey Nets (0-11) tonight at the Bradley Center. Injuries have been the story for New Jersey as the Nets have become a walking MASH Unit.

Most notably PG Devin Harris, who returned to practice Monday but isn’t expected to play until sometime after Thursday. Harris has missed the last nine games according to Nets official.

Milwaukee is coming off an overtime home loss on Monday when after being down by 18, the Bucks game back and had a chance to win it in regulation, but eventually ended up losing thanks to a Dirk Nowitzki last second fade away 16 footer as time expired.

Rookie PG Brandon Jennings (25/5/5), coming off a record breaking 55 point outing the previous game, had a mere 25 in the loss to Dallas to go with 8 assist and 7 rebounds

The rarified air surrounding his 55 point performance against the Warrior’s has only been breathed by the likes of Chamberlain, Barry, Earl The Pearl and Elgin Baylor as NBA rookie’s.



Jennings continues to impress it seems every game, mostly hitting big shot after big shot when the team most needs it.

In the loss to Dallas they seemed to get away from going down low to fifth year center Andrew Bogut (15/9) when they needed to slow things down.



Bogut himself played his worst game of this five game stretch, turning the ball over in key situations and letting Drew Gooden (Gooden came in averaging just 5 ppg ) go off for 22 points including an offensive put back Bogut should have had blocked out but didn’t, allowing the Mavs to tie the game with under a minute to go.

The Nets second year center Brooke Lopez (18/9) has the size and skill to play with Bogut, so the center matchup between the two should make an interesting sub plot. Lopez is coming off a 26 point 16 rebound effort last night in a 91-83 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Second year player Chris Douglas Roberts had a career high 27 against the Pacers.

Milwaukee’s Michael Redd is due back Friday pending Thursday’s workout in front of doctors. Coach Scott Skiles said he is thinking about a lineup change for tonight’s game, which could mean PF Ersan Ilyasova could be replacing Hakim Warrick as the starter, and/or Luc Richard Mbah A Moute could start at SF in place of the slumping Carlos Delfino.

It should be noted that news recently surfaced that Delfino hasn’t been feeling well physically. He feels weak, his stomach is ailing and he hasn’t felt “right” for a couple of weeks.


Ilyasova and Mbah A Moute combined for 32 points, 18 rebounds and 5 assists against the Mavs. Warrick has made a career (and has done well) coming off the bench, plus with Delfino unable to get UN track early, it would make perfect since to shuffle the deck a little.

So tonight we could see starting…

Bogut
Ersan
Mbah A moute
Bell
Jennings

Bench would then be…

Gadzurich
Warrick
Delfino
Meeks
Ridnour

Skiles thinking had been to start the long, athletic Warrick with Jennings, but that hasn’t worked consistently well as of yet.

Milwaukee has got to go back to the basics of what made them 4-1 in the last five games, and aside form Jennings, defense had been the Bucks calling card. After back to back games having been torched by Golden State and Dallas for 125 points and 115 points on 56% and 51% shooting respectfully, perhaps that could be Skiles thinking if he is to insert the more defensive minded Ersan and Luc.

We’ll know more right before tip off, but defense has to come first. We do that, and continue to play unselfish on the offensive end; New Jersey should walk out of the Bradley Center still searching for their first win.

Here’s to hoping so

Bucks 100
Nets    89

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An amazing thing took place at the Bradley Center last night, one for the ages as far as franchise lore goes. These ‘new look’ Milwaukee Bucks (5-2) is riding a four game winning streak after last nights 129-125 win over the Golden State Warriors (3-6).

Brandon Jennings: This night was his. We thought his previous game was his coming out party when he dropped 32 on Denver in Milwaukee’s 108 / 102 victory over the Nuggets on Wednesday, but that was spoken too soon.

Turns out that was only the appetizer as the rookie laid a double nickel (55) on the unsuspecting Warriors. He scored 45 points in the second half, 29 in the pivitol third quarter including 16 in a row. For an encore he stroked 16 in the fourth, and every point was critical as the Warriors led as late as 111 / 110.



“They kept going under the screens in the first half but I was looking to get my team mates involved,” Jennings said. “ They kept going under in the second half and I thought ok, if you are going to keep disrespecting me, I’m going to start taking advantage of it.” .

Boy, did he ever. He broke a 39 year 9 month old franchise record in points scored by a rookie. The most points ever scored in a quarter by an opponent against Golden State.

His new nickname may have to become The SHOW.

Andrew Bogut: Yes there were other players in the game as well. Bogut has continued his strong play during the teams four game winning streak, coming up big again last night recording 19 points and 11 rebounds on 9/12 shooting.



He and Jennings are really playing the pick and roll to perfection. But as Bogut said…”tonight we picked, we didn’t roll. When Brandon gets hot like that, I just want to get him open”. That my friends, is leadership 

Luc Richard Mbah A Moute: Eight points, twelve rebounds, two steals and three assist for the garbage man hustle man for Milwaukee. On a Jennings turnover he stole the ball right back late in the game with the Bucks clinging to a 1 point lead.



He has gotten stronger, and silently has become a very strong rebounder with his added bulk he put on this off season..

Charlie Bell: Charlie “dumb” Bell after his over and back violation with under a minute to play, and the Warriors made us pay big time for that gaff. Otherwise stellar, solid and steady defensively for 38 minutes with the lone turnover.

Made a huge 3 to put Milwaukee up for good.

Luke Ridnour: Much needed extra ball handler on this night as Skiles went with Bell, Jennings and Luke (36 minutes) to counter the Warriors small ball.

Thirteen points and four assist and two big 3’s.

Jodi Meeks (16 minutes) and Ersan Ilyasova (14 minutes): Combined for 17 points and 8 rebounds in their roles tonight. Ersan is long and active, Meeks plays fast, seems to be a good rebounder at his position and has room for growth.

Overall the team snapped out of its first half doledrums with just enough to beat an amazing team on the other side. Golden State was a nightmare to defend. Monta Ellis led Golden State in scoring with 26, followed closely behind by Corey Maggette with 25, and Stephen Jackson with 21. Rookie gaurd Stephen Curry netted 14 points in 26 minutes of action.

Talk about playing fast!! That’s us next year 

The Bucks allowed just 2 offensive rebounds on 36 Warrior misses, while getting 15 offensive rebounds of their own, dominating the glass 46 to 31.

When Coach Skiles was asked after the game what he said to Jennings, he said “get some rest and say hello to Jason Kidd on Monday”.

Such is life in the cold hearted NBA.

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When the Golden State Warriors (3-5) visit the Bradley Center tonight to play the Milwaukee Bucks (4-2), an excitement will be in the air. The Warriors are second in the league in scoring at 109 ppg, but they are also last in the league in scoring defense, giving up an unconscious able 111 ppg.

The Warriors have six players averaging in double figures, led by PG Monta Ellis at 18.5 ppg, and Steven Jackson at 16.0 ppg. Rookie PG Stephen Curry is averaging 7.6 ppg in 26 minutes.

Milwaukee on the other hand is second in the league in scoring defense, yielding a mere 88 ppg, while ranking a modest 23rd in scoring (93 ppg).

The Bucks are led by an exciting duo. Brash, confident and most of all talented rookie PG Brandon Jennings leads the team in scoring at 20.7 ppg and assist (5.2) in just over 32 minutes a game.



The other half of Milwaukee’s new found duo is fifth year center Andrew Bogut, (15/9)



So is it going to be a track meet? Or a grind it out defensive slug fest??

I am thinking this will be the highest scoring game thus far the Bucks will have been involved in these first seven games. Why?

Because slowly but surely, with the team…

• coming in a month early

• then going through training camp

• 8 preseason games

• six regular season games

• several days to practice and watch film in between these first six games

• They have been home for a week.

• They are playing faster it seems every game.

• They are getting some chemistry from all of this time together.

• The players have been focused, they have been attentive, and they have been good soldiers all, to Head Coach Scott Skiles and his basketball bible.

Certainly their hard nosed defensive philosophy will still be present, but I think they want to move the ball and play fast.

They have been getting better at early offense, and with their continued unselfish play, and getting more efficient at moving the ball faster, combined with the Warrior’s “lack of something” on defense, I see an up and down game tonight.

I think tonight is the perfect night for the Bucks offense to explode. Of course defense and rebounding is the key. Last night the Warriors had only 17 assist on 45 made field goals, meaning they must “iso” allot.

Hold the fort defensively, rebound and get out and put up IF you got a good shot early. If not, swing it around, go through Bogut, and do it over and over again, all night, just be aggressive against this team, constantly moving and passing to the more open shooter.

Last year in China we played GS, and those games were played the same way I am saying here, but now even faster. Throw in the fact Bucks rookie PG Brandon Jennings thrives in this style of pla.y…in my crystal ball I see the table set for some good old fashion up and down 1980’s basketball tonight.

Then when we need too late in the game, I think we are starting to have the ability to slow things down, get some defensive stops and close out another one, with an inside/outside game.

You don’t wanna miss this one.



Bucks 113
Warriors 104 

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MILWAUKEE:  Last night’s game pitting the Milwaukee Bucks (4-2) vs the Denver Nuggets (6-3) was a litmus test of sorts for Milwaukee. They had been playing well this season, but hadn’t faced an elite team before hosting the Nuggets at the Bradley Center.

These “new look” Bucks have had a swagger about them all this early season, and last nights game shows you reasons why. The Bucks have been playing Duke type of basketball if you will.

They are extremely unselfish, from one through 12, who ever is on the court, they are expected to play sound, solid hard nose defense, because if you don’t, Bucks Head Coach Scott Skiles will sit your BEHIND on the pine.

Case in point…starter Hakim Warrick wasn’t putting out the effort expected by the demanding coach on the defensive end, so Skiles sits him for the next twelve minutes.

The Bucks have been getting contributions from every direction, as evidenced once again by the leagues leading rebounding team having at least four players with at least six rebounds, while two other players had five and four rebounds as well.

The constant big guns for the Bucks are their two best players, fifth year center Andrew Bogut, who turns 25 this month, and 20 year old rookie PG Brandon Jennings.

After that, it’s a “BY Committee” type of thing, where on a given night two or three other players come up big as well. Top to bottom this has been a roster full of contributors.

Some numbers from last night reads…

Brandon Jennings: Career high 32 points on 11-19 shooting from the field, 8-8 from the free throw line, and 2-2 from three point range . He had 4 rebounds, 9 assists, and 4 turnovers in 38 minutes.



If you can believe it, Jennings had a “quite” 32, that is until he hit those big three’s and knocked down 6/6 at the free throw line in the final minute..

Jennings is getting his numbers within the flow of the offense. He isn’t forcing anything, he is sharing the ball, and he has been playing very efficient, showing maturing beyond his years.

With Milwaukee ahead 91-90 late in the fourth, Jennings delivers two back to back daggers from beyond the arc to put Milwaukee up seven, 97-90. The Bucks withstood a strong push at the end by Denver.

Andrew Bogut: His 23 points on 10-15 shooting (3-3 FT’s), 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 4 blocks, and 2 turnovers in 38 minutes once again gave the Bucks an inside presence, opening things up for everybody else. He hit perhaps the biggest shot of the night with 24 seconds left, when he hit an 8 foot runner, putting his team up 102-97.



Since SG Mike Redd’s injury, the last four games Bogut is averaging 19.5ppg, 10.3rpg.

Ersan Ilyasova: 17 points on 5-8 shooting from the field, 4/4 FT’s, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, and 1 turnover in 22 minutes.



Ersan is finding his way. After playing all summer in international ball, he had eight days off before starting training camp. He is seemingly getting more comfortable every game, going 3 for 3 from downtown, all in the first half, helping the Bucks open a double digit lead..

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute: 10 points on 3-8 shooting (4-4 from the line), 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block, and 1 turnover in 35 minutes. Carmelo Anthony got his 32 points, but Luc Richard made him take 25 shots to do it, forcing Anthony to 36% shooting.



He too is starting to come around after a slow start recovering from a bruised left knee he got in practice prior to the opening of the regular season.

The most impressive thing through all of this, is the overall team play. The unselfishness, the chemistry between Bogut and Jennings, the effort, the fast pace by which they play, all has been a pleasant surprise for this (going on 40 years) Bucks fan.

Can they sustain it? Can Bogut stay healthy? Will the wear and grind of a long NBA season be too much for the slight framed Jennings to handle?

Who knows? We’ll see, but the early returns are these are not your Daddy’s Milwaukee Bucks. In fact, these guys are fun to watch, especially with the next four games still to be played at the Bradley Center.

Stay tuned! 

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SHEBOYGAN: Make sure you check in at the Bradley Center tonight (or at least on TV) to see how the Bucks are faring against an elite team in the Denver Nuggets.

This is the second of a six game homestand for Milwaukee (3-2), while Denver is finishing the 6th game of a six game road trip, where they are currently 3-2 on the trip and (6-2) overall.

By virtue of Denver beating the Bulls last night on a controversial call at the buzzer, Milwaukee fell in to first place in their division.

Milwaukee hasn't played since Saturday night, so we'll see who gets the advantage in that regard. Should be Milwaukee, but too many times in simialr situations I have seen us throw a clunker down and get blown out by the team that should be tired and dragging, so we'll see.

Rookie PG Brandon Jennings goes up against his stiffest competition yet in the combination of Chauncey Billips, and fellow rookie PG Ty Lawson.





Center Andrew Bogut has been averaging 18.3ppg, 10.3 rpg and 3.3 asst pg the last three games, helping fill the void with the loss of Mike Redd to a hobbled left peteler (sp?) tendon injury.




Another Bucks rookie, SG Jodi Meeks has seen his most extended action of his young career in Milwaukee's drubbing of the KY Knicks 102-87. Meeks played 19 minutes, shot 5-7 from 3 point range, and scored a career high 19pts. Look for Bucks coach Scott Skiles to continue to work Meeks more and more into the regular rotation.



Nuggets JR Smith was back in the lineup last night after serving a seven game suspension relating to a personal matter with the law (vehicle accident). PF Kenyon Martin returned as well, playing 35 minutes. Coming off a knee injury I expect Martin to not play as many minutes tonight on this second game of a back to back.

Milwaukee hasn't allowed an opponent over 100 points in a game thus far, standing second in the league in scoring defense, while Denver is second in the league in scoring at just over 106 ppg. Something's gotta give!

Should be a good one, the Bradley will be rocking tonight.

Go Bucks!!

Milwaukee  103

Denver           99

The always down in the dumps Milwauke Bucks (3-2) has seemingly rises from the ashes in this early edition of the 2009/2010 NBA season. Gone are the days of being pushovers and training fodder for the the majority of NBA teams. Todays Bucks are carrying a swagger unseen in these parts in decades.

Why? As with any sucessful team, there is no one reason why the Bucks are off to a good start, but all the excitment that is building is because of the play of Brandon Jennings, the brash confident PG who broke tradition by getting in David Sterns dog house bypassing college and playing a year over seas, opening the potentil flood gates for other prep stars to follow.

But it has not just been Jennings. Below is a quick synopsis of the current Bucks roster and how they are all fitting together.

Luc Richard Mbah A Moute: Long , athletic, versatile. One of the top five defensive players in the league. Can gaurd four positions. Has been quite thus far. We haven’t seen the payoff yet on his jumper he worked on all off season. If he, Ersan and DelFino break out, we could be scary good.

Hakim Warrick: Dunks a lot. Long, athletic, versatile. Knows how to draw fouls. Would much rather have him for one year at 3.5 mill as opposed to Charlie Villanueva at 7-8 mill per for five years.

Ersan Ilyasova: Considered the top player in Europe playing for Barcelona. Long, athletic (kinda) and versatile. He’s adjusting to the NBA. Once he gets reacclimated, I want him shooting. Has range to beyond the arc.

Carlos DelFino: Rugged, smart, hasn’t had a breakout game yet. Very physical, good rebounder, scrappy, very good range. Good guy to have, but haven’t seen his best yet.

Jodi Meeks: Will be seeing more of him. Excellent shooter, live body, knows defense comes first in order to get out on the court.

Brandon Jennings: Would rather have Jennings for four years as opposed to Sessions being the starter the next four years. He is actually a very nice, well mannered genuine kid, who puts team first. He is exciting, but he is doing a nice job of getting everyone involved, including center Andrew Bogut.

Andrew Bogut: Mr. Everything has been showing off his immense skilles these last three games (19/10). Not coincidently, Redd has been out all three games. Excellent passer, when half court offense goes through him ,good things happen, I mean almost always.

Luke RidNour Steady heady PG, a nice compliment to BJ3.

Charlie Bell: Has been playing steady defense, but Meeks will beat him out soon, then we will use an all rookie backcourt at times this year, and that’s a good thing.

Dan Gadzurich: Rule of thumb still applies "Never count on Danny G." I will say this though, so far so good this year. Skiles has had an effect on Gadz. He has slowed down on the offensive end, and brought some positive vibes defensively. However I still hold my breath when he enters a game and that feeling won’t go away anytime soon, nor should it.

Roko Ukic: I like him. I like he is six feet four and seems fundamentally sound with a good head on his shoulders. Too early to tell anything concrete.

Francisco Elson: Incomplete. Gadz beat him out which should tell you something.

Mike Redd: I have never liked his game. A designated shooter who would be a good third option on a good team. No leadership whatsoever, terrible passer, can not finish on a break. The two time’s he did he got hurt. Chucker mentality.

Joe Alexander: Biggest disappointment for me personally in several years, after I defended this pick to the bitter end. I still think he is going to be a NBA player in time.

Kurt Thomas: I like Skiles candor when he said about Thomas…" he is too slow to play with us." As long as Gadz is playing the way he has been this year, Thomas won’t be needed as much save for going up against Boston, Cleveland, Spurs, ect.

Overall we are all excited about the tough defense, the unselfishness, and a kid named Jennings. We are number one in scoring defense and rebounding. Everyone is contrubuting. We're playing Duke basketball basically, moving, cutting, sharing the ball, and on defense, well, Scott Skiles is our coach, nuff said. Keep your eye on the Bucks

Hold on to your hats, because the breeze you're feeling is the wind of change.  Bucks fans, meet one Brandon Jennings, whom we all will get to know a little more over these next six home games.

We all know how loud the BC can get when we have something to cheer about, and BJ3 is about to learn this.  I told him that I speak for the fans when I say the Bradly Center is now your house, we want to give it to him.  I said he needs to take the keys to the house, protect it, make us proud and most of all, have some fun.

It starts tonight, and with the love affair building between he and Milwaukee, it is going to be crazy by the end of this home stand, I can just feel it.

He is learning to use Bogut to the teams advantage, to slow things down, to maximize Boguts emmense skills, and let Andrew take some of his burden from him.

That, combined with Hakim Warrick gives the Bucks a poor mans version of a Big Three.

Springle in solid roll players, and a fiery Head Coach, who demands hard physical defense, I say (sounding Dick Vital)...let the good times roll baby!!

 

 

 

 

 

As I watched the first game played (Warriors vs Bucks) in China earlier this week, I was left scratching my head thinking…”what did I just see?” I couldn’t place it. Then I watched the game tonight, more prepared for what I was about to see, and there it was again, even better than the first time through.

Collectively, what I saw was everyone who played, play with intensity, they played hard, they played smart, and they played with a flow about them, a consistency about how they played almost everytime down the court.

Please note that when I talk about this Milwaukee Bucks team of ours, for the sake of this discussion, I am comparing it to last years Bucks team, not the rest of the NBA.

Everyone was moving. Many of you in the past have refered to Andrew Bogut as a plodder, when in fact it was Mo Williams who was the real plodder. It appears the days are over when our PG would stand out top and stand still, and dribble the ball ten to twelve times, drive and shoot or give it up to Michael Redd to shoot a long jumper, rather he was open or not.

Two man chucker basketball is a thing of the past. EVEYONE now is contributing, and everyone is getting theirs numbers. CV, Redd and RJ combined for 62 tonight. Maybe Bogut didn't (scoring wise), but he doesn’t care! He was passing, defending, rebounding, blocking out for others, taking charges...

Coach Scott Skiles also had Ridnour and Sessions on the court at the same time, which ball handling wise was nice, and except for the fast break Sessions tried to find Luc, but threw it in to the hands of a defender at the free throw line, they played well together.

Joe Alexander…my enthusiasm will remain tempered for now, but that man could be a monster. Anthony Randolf will also be a player, so lets go with our guy and support him. HE works hard, he can jump, he plays under control, and his hands are like a vice when protecting the ball. And his first step is perhaps the fastest in his draft class. Very impressive in deed.

Luc Richard…my gosh, he must stay and play. He and JA both were part of the defensive team Skiles had on the floor at the end of the game. There is everything to like about him.

Within the flow Redd got his numbers. RJ was unselfish and playing hard. Cv was good CV, scoring from all over in the flow of the offense. Two missed open baseline jumpers hurt a little bit.

Getting back to Ridnour, he reminds me of a conservative Ernie Di Gregorio. He is close to magician status with the basketball. When his shot starts to fall, he’ll be tough to matchup with.

Sessions needs to put more ump behind his passes, as twice he threw it away because of lazy passes, and a third he almost did. Ramon did hit some big shots tonight. Sessions should be the second PG. Lue has his strengths, but his old habbit of wanting to get his numbers may hurt his minutes. Remember we also have Bell coming back to as a 2 guard, meaning Sessons won’t play the 2 as much.

A reminder to all Bucks fan's, the number one rule is... Don’t count on Danny G.

Elson looks to be the better choice in the “big” rotation, solidifying the front court with hustle, defense, rebounding, leadership, and better hands than Gadz.

How about Scott Skiles? I like him. He has a bunch of players from rookies to veterans who all seem to be coachable and willing to do what he asks. Add it all together and you have both John Hammonds and Skile’s imprint all over this team. Are we talking a championship team? No. Not yet. But when comparing this team to last years team, all the changes that have been are positive thus far. I challenge anyone to argue they are not heading in the right direction.

I haven’t seen them play against a half court team yet, but I like what I see for a number of reasons. Spacing, work hard, play smart, take care of the ball, everyone moving, cutting, passing, playing unselfish, coach speak to some, but here in Milwaukee, these words seem to have more meaning, at least when compared to last years team

I thought JA let the game come to him. He did rush a couple of shots, but showed his reknowed "spring" in his legs" on his jump shot. Improved from game one. Had two passes where he led his man on the move perfectly for scores.

Had two "taps" to team mates on the offensive glass that allowed us to maintain possesion. Needs to be more assertive offensively, I mean most of his team mates won't be in the NBA next year, and some of them were just chuckers, yet he deferred to them.

Nice drive and finish to start the second half. Sat out the entire second quarter, played all but two and half minutes in second half. Helped nicely bringing the ball up the court, actually handled that aspect with ease. On an opponents dunk attempt he was called for a foul on a blocked shot where his body made contact, but he difinitely showed "ups".

He shot better in this game (5-9) than in game 1 (2-13).

Overall, a so-so game, but improvement from game 1 is what I was looking for, and he accomplished that.