“A Milwaukee Bucks Midseason Review: Questions, Concerns, & a Hint of Optimism for the 2023-2024 Team”
At just past the halfway point of the NBA regular season, the Milwaukee Bucks have a win-loss record of 32-15. Together with the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers, the Bucks are positioned right where most basketball analysts had predicted they’d be—at the top of the NBA’s Eastern Conference playoff race. We’re approaching the time of year when NBA contenders will start to separate from the pack. Success leading into the All-Star break is important for all teams, but it isn’t always reflective for how the second half of their seasons will unfold. I recall my junior year of college, in 2001-2002, when the Bucks were holding the #2 seed at right around this same time of year. That particular Bucks team, led by all-stars Ray Allen, Glenn Robinson, and Sam Cassell, would fall apart down the stretch by losing 16 of their final 22 games to miss the playoffs entirely. I’m not predicting that’s what will happen with this year’s Bucks, seeing how the talents of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, Khris Middleton, and Brook Lopez are all still in tow. Despite the team’s winning record, most fans could attest that the Bucks haven’t quite hit all of the expectations many of us had leading into the preseason. They’re one of the worst defensive units in the NBA; this following a run of consecutive years when they were ranked at, or, near the top of the league in most defensive statistical categories. They’re blowing way too many leads and aren’t closing out enough of their games, even against teams like Detroit, Washington, and San Antonio, who’ve been operating in tank-mode ever since the start of the season. Out is first-year head coach Adrian Griffin. In is future Hall of Famer Doc Rivers. If you count Mike Budenholzer, who was fired at the end of last season, that makes three head coaching salaries that the Bucks are financing on this year’s payroll. Accountability starts at the top in the world of professional sports, and in the case of the Bucks, Coach Griffin and Coach Bud are prime examples of it. Will new leadership be the impetus to get this year’s Bucks on track? This is the $183 million question (not counting the salaries of their three head coaches 😆) that will help tell the storyline for how the second half of the regular season will unfold. Expectations remain high, as does the pressure on the Bucks players, coaching staff, and front office in their collective pursuit of another Larry O’Brien trophy. Make no mistake about it: the time is now for another championship run in Milwaukee. Coach Griffin may’ve been the first piece to fall this season, but if the team ends up collapsing the same way as they did last year (see Coach Bud), then rest assured he won’t be the last.
The Damian Lillard trade: a defining moment in franchise history and the biggest Bucks roster move of the past 20 years.
Damian Lillard arrived in Milwaukee on September 30th, 2023, and with him, he brought great expectations. As one of the league’s most prolific offensive point guards of the past 10 years, Lillard remains at, or very near the top of his game. While the move made the Bucks early preseason favorites to emerge as title contenders in the NBA’s Eastern Conference, it came at a price. Jrue Holiday has been beloved by the Bucks organization and fan base from the moment he arrived in Milwaukee in 2020. He helped lead the Bucks to their first NBA championship in over 40 years, carrying the team on his back during their playoff run, especially when Giannis was injured for the majority of the Eastern Conference Finals. In the aftermath of last season’s first-round playoff loss to Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat, Milwaukee’s front offense must’ve concluded that Holiday wasn’t the same offensive-capable point guard who could lead them to another championship. From a statistical standpoint, it’s difficult to argue that this isn’t at least partially true. Holiday hasn’t been the same offensive player during the past two seasons as he was during the stretch run of their 2020-2021 playoff campaign. He’s also on the wrong side of 30 (though so is Lillard 😬) at a point guard position which, in the modern NBA, is defined by both explosive quickness and youth. In Lillard’s case, he’s coming off a season with the highest offensive production of his career (32.2 points per game), making him seem like the obvious candidate to provide everything the organization has been searching for. Right? For those of us who’ve been watching the Bucks this season, I think we can agree that the jury is still mostly out. Lillard’s greatness as an offensive player is one thing, but the future Hall of Famer is nowhere near the same caliber of a backcourt defender as Holiday is. At the peak of the Bucks preseason excitement surrounding the Lillard trade, I recall the reaction of 14-year NBA veteran, Patrick Beverley, on X (formerly known as Twitter):
“Losing Jrue is Big. That’s all imma say.”
Beverley’s words brought to light much of what Bucks Nation had probably been thinking at the time, but preferred not to acknowledge. Lillard has played the part he was intended to thus far, but the fact remains that the Bucks do miss Holiday’s two-way game. Lillard’s production on offense, while impressive, hasn’t completely justified all of his defensive shortcomings, leaving the Bucks net gain from the trade a matter of debate. I believe there’s still time to deem the trade a success, and maybe even a resounding one, especially when you factor in Lillard’s reputation for being one of the game’s most reliable players in the clutch. There’ve been early “Dame Time” appearances already this season, and considering how often the NBA playoffs will come down to a possession-by-possession grind, I like being the team that has Lillard in our corner. Something has to give on the defensive side of the ball though, and Lillard isn’t the only player who needs to improve. If the Bucks expect a collective turnaround, then a boost in everyone’s contributions will be critical.
Head coach Mike Budenholzer…Adrian Griffin…Joe Prunty…Doc Rivers.
The Coach Bud firing at the end of last season came as a surprise to many. After all, it isn’t every year that the head coach of the NBA’s winningest regular season team ends up losing his job. Looking back, what seems even more surprising is that the Bucks made the move without having a clear vision as for who’d be replacing him. When they hired Adrian Griffin, there wasn’t much fanfare made about the decision on national or local levels. As a 15-year NBA assistant coach, Griffin seemed like a decent option based on the pool of available candidates. During his 43-game tenure as head coach of the Bucks, he was questioned for some of his in-game decision-making on both sides of the ball, and received a fair amount of criticism for a lack of cohesive organization as the team’s floor general. My impression of Griffin during the times I observed him on the sideline was that he didn’t have a presence that commanded attention, at least not in the way I expected him to as the leader of a veteran-led NBA team and a “win-now” organization. I appreciated the way he responded to critical feedback on the occasions he was called out by some of his players, as well as during post-game interviews with the media. He was forthcoming in his admissions that he was new in his role as a head coach, and that he was learning certain aspects to his job as they came to him. He took ownership for the expectations he was falling short on, and agreed that he had to better. I felt like his declarations of self-accountability were refreshing to hear since so few people seem humble enough to proclaim them anymore, especially from the platform he was standing on. I believe that Coach Griffin will get another lead position someday, whether in professional or college sports. When he does, I hope it’s a better fit for him than the one he had on his short run with the Bucks. Doc Rivers is an accomplished NBA head coach with 25 years of experience, a world championship to his credit, and personal ties to the Milwaukee community. Perhaps the Bucks core of veteran players will benefit from a voice with more authority and reputation behind it to get them to maximize their potential. Let’s hope the move works, because if Coach Rivers isn’t their guy then it’s difficult to imagine what Plan B is. I mean C. Scratch that, Plan D. Wait, isn’t Rivers technically Plan D? Oh, whatever…
Reading between the lines: some additional variables that have contributed to the Bucks less than overwhelming start to their season.
A casual Bucks fan might look at the team’s record and placement in the Eastern Conference playoff picture and feel confused over what all of the fuss is about. The ugly truth is that at their current trajectory, this team has zero chance of contending for another NBA title, as even a divisional-round playoff series victory feels like a tall order. The loss of Holiday combined with the team’s head-coaching carousel are worth noting, but there are other issues beleaguering them. What’s easy to forget is that Holiday wasn’t the only player the team lost from last season. Grayson Allen and Jevon Carter were important role players, with defensive efficiency ratings that would’ve ranked higher than every member of this year’s current team whose last name isn’t Antetokounmpo. Fan favorite Bobby Portis, Mrs. Lynch favorite Pat Connaughton, and newcomer Cameron Payne are all having down years in most statistical categories, as is the rest of the Bucks bench mob across the board. The Bucks have played against the easiest schedule of any team in the league during the first half of the NBA season. Moving forward, they’ll now face the toughest.
The Bucks are going to need to make some adjustments if they intend to compete for another championship, and they know it. The encouraging thing is that the players don’t seem to be panicking. As a unit, they’ve had some minor injuries while still managing to stay healthy—even Middleton, who remains on a minute restriction, but continues working his way back into form. The team has an elite offense, an eye on potential trade-deadline targets (P.J. Tucker anyone?), and most importantly, a core group of veterans who are unselfish and share a desire to win. The pieces are all there, and if not then rest assured that general manager Jon Horst will try to acquire them. Suffice it to say, I’m looking forward to seeing how the regular season will continue to play out. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, as sports fans we mustn’t take for granted the value of relevancy. The Bucks have had it for a long time now, and win or lose, all signs indicate they’ll be keeping it for the foreseeable future.
- Todd
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