PG Magic - Bucks Roll to 6th Straight

[wallus]

I like when AJJ gets minutes but he was bad last night and didn't deserve more than he got.

[MartyConlonOnTheRun]

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/highest-win-percentage-by-an-nba-coach
Sample size keeps getting bigger....

I think the biggest thing to me is that Giannis looks healthy and has shown improvement in focusing on work around the basket. Yeah he still launches some WTF 3s.... but those have been immaterial if we are being Giann-est. I had major concerns we would start seeing drop in productivity. Guys like Howard, DaJ, Drummond *** all fell off a cliff by 29. Giannis is out there not only dunking on guys but expanding his low post game a little bit (being more of a cutter than needing to power through guys).


***When did Shaq start to decline? Was it around 32?

[Profound23]

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/highest-win-percentage-by-an-nba-coach
Sample size keeps getting bigger....

I think the biggest thing to me is that Giannis looks healthy and has shown improvement in focusing on work around the basket. Yeah he still launches some WTF 3s.... but those have been immaterial if we are being Giann-est. I had major concerns we would start seeing drop in productivity. Guys like Howard, DaJ, Drummond *** all fell off a cliff by 29. Giannis is out there not only dunking on guys but expanding his low post game a little bit (being more of a cutter than needing to power through guys).


***When did Shaq start to decline? Was it around 32?

Yeah about 32-34, and he didn't take care of his body at all.

[Shaffty]

Quality win.

At the same time, they need to fix that defense. The Wagner boys had their way in the paint on offense. You could watch the same play develop over and over again.

they were attacking one bench player

[GHOSTofSIKMA]

nice writeup on us at espn this morning

https://www.espn.com/nba/insider/story/_/id/39154651/zach-lowe-latest-warriors-lakers-bucks

Psst: The Milwaukee Bucks have the No. 1 offense over their past 20 games, and sit just a half-game behind the Boston Celtics for the East's top seed. They might not run as much Lillard-Antetokounmpo pick-and-roll as anyone envisioned, but the current formula is working.

After an uncertain first 10 games, the Bucks have unleashed hell in transition -- one place where their superstars enjoy undeniable chemistry. Antetokounmpo loves to grab and go, and he has never had a shooting threat like Lillard running with him:


(That's a nice screen from Andre Jackson Jr., who is getting more run lately and brings the length and defense Milwaukee so sorely needs on the wing. He's also 11-of-24 from deep. The Bucks need to test out whether Jackson and MarJon Beauchamp might be ready for real playoff minutes.)

Gander at all the space Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez have up the middle in semi-transition with Lillard, Khris Middleton, and Malik Beasley dotting the arc:


Milwaukee is running only 16.5 Lillard-Antetokounmpo pick-and-rolls per 100 possessions -- about 10 per game. (Lillard has set only seven ball screens for Antetokounmpo. That should be a major asset, too.)

There are a bunch of reasons, good and bad, the Bucks have made middling usage of a potential tentpole play: typical chemistry hiccups, rotation patterns, and the coaching staff's desire to test out other Lillard-centric combinations in which Antetokounmpo lurks as a cutter. But an underplayed reason is tapping into Lillard's gravity as a spot-up gunner around Antetokounmpo's actions, including the Antetokounmpo-Lopez two-man game.

The Bucks discovered that teams would overplay the Lillard-Antetokounmpo pick-and-roll when they saw it coming -- blitzing Lillard and swarming Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo's only option would be kicking out for 3s.

Those are solid shots, though defenses whittle away the efficiency by snuffing the corners and rotating on time. But they are higher-variance shots. They don't yield free throws. Antetokounmpo and Lillard are all-time scorers; they want to start and finish possessions.


But the Bucks should be careful overcorrecting. Against the best defenses, they will need to lean harder into the Lillard-Antetokounmpo two-man game. Part of that is figuring out ways to get into it before defenses can gird themselves. That takes reps.

One stat to watch that I mentioned earlier this week on the Lowe Post podcast: Milwaukee has outscored opponents by almost 19 points per 100 possessions with its four best players - Lillard, Middleton, Antetokounmpo, and Lopez - on the floor, with a defensive rating that would rank No. 1 among teams. The Bucks' overall defense has not been up to par, but that's a good sign of championship viabilty.

[sidney lanier]

none of that has anything to do with the insane amount of talent we have on the roster.... or what this teams ceiling is. that isnt the debate. and since nobody here doesnt acknowledge that aspect of it and is grateful beyond belief were in this position then why point fingers at the guys that simply want to enjoy watching a well organized team for the first time this season

Which is what we all want, optimists and pessimists alike. I suppose we express the desire differently based on our characterological makeup.

What sometimes grinds my beans, though, is the way stats are cherry-picked or partialized in an effort to show that the team is not all that. That's an easy game to play both ways, and it's the "we're doomed" crowd that seems to love to play it the most.

[GHOSTofSIKMA]

none of that has anything to do with the insane amount of talent we have on the roster.... or what this teams ceiling is. that isnt the debate. and since nobody here doesnt acknowledge that aspect of it and is grateful beyond belief were in this position then why point fingers at the guys that simply want to enjoy watching a well organized team for the first time this season

Which is what we all want, optimists and pessimists alike. I suppose we express the desire differently based on our characterological makeup.

What sometimes grinds my beans, though, is the way stats are cherry-picked or partialized in an effort to show that the team is not all that. That's an easy game to play both ways, and it's the "we're doomed" crowd that seems to love to play it the most.

in my defense ive used srs for years and commented on it often as a better measure of where we stand in any given season

until our number gets above 5 minimum i see little to NOT be concerned about

i will add that last year denver and miami had seasons that made that number seem less important. maybe it was an outlier maybe more indicative of the "new league" as others here have mentioned... im willing to stay open minded on that. id just like to see us have some games where we run people out of the gym. all great teams are capable of running people out of a gym and thats whats missing here. maybe the greatest difference so far from the "bud years" in a nutshell?

[tedbrogen]

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/highest-win-percentage-by-an-nba-coach
Sample size keeps getting bigger....

I think the biggest thing to me is that Giannis looks healthy and has shown improvement in focusing on work around the basket. Yeah he still launches some WTF 3s.... but those have been immaterial if we are being Giann-est. I had major concerns we would start seeing drop in productivity. Guys like Howard, DaJ, Drummond *** all fell off a cliff by 29. Giannis is out there not only dunking on guys but expanding his low post game a little bit (being more of a cutter than needing to power through guys).


***When did Shaq start to decline? Was it around 32?

I don’t think Shaq is a good comp for decline because he didn’t take care of his body like Giannis does.

Giannis is a freak who even losing some quickness and athleticism will still be elite in those areas and will still be super tall with gogogadget arms. He’s already getting more crafty around the rim with his moves and how he is laying the ball in around defenders.

He’s a top twenty all time player (maybe better) in an age with improving medicine and training, so baring a catastrophic injury, he’ll be uber efficient into his late 30s.imo

[SirChurros]

An interesting insight from Lowe:

“Milwaukee has outscored opponents by almost 19 points per 100 possessions with its four best players - Lillard, Middleton, Antetokounmpo, and Lopez - on the floor, with a defensive rating that would rank No. 1 among teams. The Bucks' overall defense has not been up to par, but that's a good sign of championship viabilty.”

[GHOSTofSIKMA]

An interesting insight from Lowe:

“Milwaukee has outscored opponents by almost 19 points per 100 possessions with its four best players - Lillard, Middleton, Antetokounmpo, and Lopez - on the floor, with a defensive rating that would rank No. 1 among teams. The Bucks' overall defense has not been up to par, but that's a good sign of championship viabilty.”

i posted that article and found it encouraging.

yesterday i looked at the numbers of the top 4 guys of the teams around us and similar numbers existed tho. i think its indicative of good teams that their top 4, when all playing together... do really really well. its hard to know what will happen with our guys, and those guys...until we meet and get to see it

i think the real takeaway from that quote is especially the defensive side. when all 4 are on the floor its not the muck weve seen but something noticeably better

[Dick Tate]

Zero issues with the minutes distribution this game. Marjon played better than Andre and he rightfully got more minutes than him.

Kind of reminds me of the football saying: If you have two QBs, you have none. Without a trade (which I think is likely), one of those 2 needs to be ready to play a valuable role. I've seen enough of AJJ to think he should to be that guy. Although, there is some time, and it's not a bad idea to give Marjon's trade value a boost.

Wasn’t there mention a couple weeks (?) ago of a player being showcased and speculation centered on MarJon?

[raysbookclub]

any chance still that Beasley's regular role becomes off the bench at some point this season?

[German Athens]

Our top 4 players have always been really productive since we’ve been a contender, the thing that was different in 2019 and 2020 compared to now has been that we had a few really good role players outside our top 4.

Those guys could usually defend pretty well, making them an easy fit with the stars, and then had the ability to play make for others on the offensive side which was useful in keeping bench laden lineups afloat. George Hill was absolutely phenomenal in 2020.

Edit: and we’ve had more injury issues with our top 4 dudes.

[Shaffty]

The Bucks bench defense has been absolutely awful do you know what will fix this? Adding Malik Beasley

[SirChurros]

Getting Crowder healthy will help, too.

[FrieAaron]

Length of threads has always been about the volume of arguments. **** if I know why anyone pretends there's anything else to it.

Yeah, it's been years of this. It has nothing to do with this season. People were in here complaining about it before anything negative was even said.

[Jez2983]

Ajax only getting 6 minutes is disappointing

Could be his back, which unfortunately is a bad sign for a rookie.

I think if his back was affecting him he wouldn't be playing at all.