europa wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
The problem - and CBQ correct me if I'm misinterpreting your point - is that too many of the Bucks placed their egos above the team. I think the three worst culprits this season were Mo, Redd and Villanueva. Mo's ego was way out of control; Redd's ego obviously became a problem and Villanueva thought he should start even though he was outplayed by Skinner last season and by Yi in camp this year. So he spent a lot of time griping behind the scenes and playing like absolute garbage most of the time when he came off the bench.
Every good player has an ego. That in itself isn't a bad thing. But the great ones understand that placing their own interests above the team's produces nothing of substance. The Bucks have yet to figure that out and I think it's one of the big reasons why they have been so bad the past two seasons.
Personally, I think the problem is talent.
There's a reason that the average pre-season position predicted by a dozen ESPN experts was between 12th and 13th in the East. These guys looked at the rosters and coaches before the season, and they thought that Bucks didn't have enough to even sniff the playoffs. They were right.
Say that the team, or rather your three main culprits, did exactly what was expected. Redd reigned in his scoring, Mo looked to others more often than not and CV simply played as hard coming off the bench as he does when he's starting.
I actually think that team wins
less. Face it. The the only three players on this team capable of winning games with their scoring are the ones you'd rather deferred. The one stretch of games that they appeared to play unselfish coincided with the wheels coming off and the season going down the drain.
The problem isn't egos, it's talent. This team doesn't have it.