Milwaukee Bucks Links: Bubble Burst Edition

Nov 7, 2012; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Jerryd Bayless (7) gets a pass away from Milwaukee Bucks guard Brandon Jennings (3) at the Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-US PRESSWIRE

OnMilwaukee.com:  Quietly, Doron Lamb is slipping into a regular role in the Bucks’ rotation.  Jim Owczarski got him to talk about his elbow, his recovery, and the things he observed while sitting out.

He’s learning though, with a new skill developed through his injury.

“I looked at (the game) from the outside,” Lamb said. “I looked at people’s games and look how the offense is run and how coach wants you to play. I was looking at everything and learning a lot off the court. A lot of vet players were teaching me what to do on the court and how to represent yourself and carry yourself off the court.

There is a role for Doron Lamb on this team, if only because the Bucks have no depth at shooting guard, Beno Udrih is needed at the point, and the starter, Monta Ellis is struggling badly.

If you include his last nine quarters of preseason basketball together with that he has done in 12 quarters of regular-season action, Monta Ellis has now made 23 of his last 88 shots (26%).  If Ellis was a great defender or distributor, then he might be able to make up for it in other ways.  But that’s simply not the case.  He needs to play better or play less.

The Bucks had some success last year with Beno at the point and Brandon as a micro-sized shooting guard, so that’s one solution.  But another is to throw Doron Lamb into the fire and see what comes of it.

Hardwood Paroxysm:  Ian Levy examines the changes in the Bucks as they try to rebuild their offense from the defensive teams of the Bogut Era while adding pace to the mix:

Although Skiles has tried his damndest to maintain that mindset, the shape of the roster has been shifted out from under him. That intense defensive focus led to offensive challenges; problems the front office tried to address by adding limited, offense-only players like Corey Maggette, Beno Udrih, Mike Dunleavy and Stephen Jackson. Sending Bogut off for Monta Ellis signaled their full commitment to this solution. It’s true that additions, Samuel Dalembert and Ekpe Udoh are defensive-minded bigs, but the heart of this team no longer beats for the defensive side of the floor.

I would assume that the current state of the Bucks roster is meant to be an intermediate stage, a step on their way to something with more abject potential for domination. However, the early returns have been intriguing. The Bucks are off to a 2-1 start, with wins against the respectably talented Celtics and Cavaliers. 

NBA.com:  Steve Aschburner notes that the successes that pushed Brandon Jennings to his Eastern Conference Player of the Week award would not have been possible without some otherworldly efficient numbers from Mike Dunleavy, Jr.  Dunleavy, for his part noted that Jennings’ demeanor didn’t change when the deadline for a contract extension passed.

“Truthfully I haven’t seen a change in him,” he said. “I think he’s handled it pretty well. Anyone — I don’t care who you are, I’ve been there before — you want to get a contract extension, of course you do. But honestly you couldn’t really tell the day of, the day after, whatever it was.

“He started off these first two games and he’s done great. He’s distributed the ball, he’s attacked the rim, he’s accepted the challenge against guys like Rajon Rondo and Kyrie Irving. He’s kept his level-head about him. His spirit’s great.”

SI.com:  Speaking of said Player of the Week, Jennings gets a profile with Ian Thomsen of SI.  He admits that the non-extension fueled him in his first pair of games of the regular season.

“It’s a humbling experience again for me,” Jennings said of his inability to agree to an extension with the Bucks in advance of the Oct. 31 deadline, setting up the 23-year-old point guard to test the free-agent market after the season.

The last time he had so much to prove was during the 2008-09 season, which he spent mainly on the bench as a 19-year-old in Italy. Coming off that experience, he put together a terrific NBA rookie year in which he started every game while leading the Bucks to the playoffs.

“When I went to Europe it was humbling, and this one now — not getting an extension,” he said. “So I just go out there and play every game and I just push myself.”

And a few tweets…

Don’t forget that Friday’s game is not on local TV.

I’ll be at the game sharing my reactions on Twitter (@AnaheimAmigos), if you’d like reactions from a second pair of eyes.

And Beno should be back for the game after practicing today. (Thank goodness!)

Andrew Bogut is getting shut down for 7 to 10 days while his left ankle strengthens.