The Milwaukee Bucks (Not So) Small Ball Lineup

Small ball is all the rage in the NBA right now, but could the Milwaukee Bucks be the latest team to move in that direction?

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When a team plays small ball they typically replace a center with a forward and often play two point guards at once. What the lineups look like is something like Guard 1, Guard 2, Forward 1, Forward 2, Forward 3 or Guard 1, Guard 2, Guard 3, Forward 1, Forward 2, or Guard 1, Guard 2, Guard 3, Forward 1, Center.

Jun 16, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors guard

Stephen Curry

(30) shoots the ball during the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers in game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Small ball impacts the game in two meaningful ways: it increases the tempo of the game which leads to more opportunities for the offense to have the ball and also increases the score. That’s because as the offense has more opportunities, they take more shots, and as they take more shots, they rack up more points.

Unfortunately, for most teams, small ball has another side effect – it makes a team weaker on the defensive end. The increased tempo gives the opposition more shots too and they get to go up against a team with fewer interior defenders so they have better chances to get points themselves.

The trick with playing small ball is scoring a lot and also finding a way to play average to above average defense at the same time. It is a lot easier said than done. That was what made the Golden State Warriors so impressive during their championship run. They had a stifling defense with a defensive rating of 98.2, best in the NBA last season, while also maintaining a ridiculous pace (number of possessions per 48 minutes for a team) of 100.69, also best in the NBA. Their fast pace was a catalyst for an explosive offense, their offensive rating was second best in the association last year at 109.7.

Another aspect of small ball that is key is the ability for the team to spread the ball and make the opposing defense work hard to cover all the shooters on the floor. Usually a small ball lineup consists of four, if not five, useful three point shooters on the floor at once.

One thing that made the Warriors so effective was that the players on the floor in their small ball lineups were effective shooters. Golden State had six different lineups, with 60 or more minutes played together in the regular season and playoffs, that were in the top 30 NBA lineups in terms of true shooting percentage. All six of those were small ball lineups.

The Milwaukee Bucks’ small ball lineup I’m envisioning is very interesting. It can improve the Bucks shooting woes, like most small ball lineups should, but it also would not suffer much at all on the defensive end.

Here is the freakishly tall small ball lineup I think Milwaukee should roll with: PG – Michael Carter-Williams (6’6″), SG – Greivis Vasquez (6’6″), SF – Khris Middleton (6’8″), PF – Jabari Parker (6’8″), and C – Giannis Antetokoumnpo (6’11”). This lineup would average out at 6’8″ per player which would be over an inch taller than the average Warrior small ball lineup.

Greivis Vasquez (21) drives to the basket. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Adding Vasquez to the fold would help improve the Bucks’ shooting dramatically. Greivis shot 38 percent from three last year while Middleton shot 41 percent. Those two, plus the competent outside (maybe only mid-range) shooting of an improving Antetokoumnpo and Carter-Williams, and a healthy again Parker could add some punch to the scoring totals.

The offense would be beautiful yet devastating. The two sharp shooters would allow the floor to be spaced nicely in the half court. Jabari would work the block and could be a nice offensive catalyst to dump the ball down to if things stymie. MCW could be the main ball handler and if he is stopped on his way to the hoop, he can dish it to a plethora of players ready to make the smart play. Giannis is the glue guy, he crashes hard for offensive rebounds, catches passes and finishes near the rim, and at times can initiate the offense or hit the catch and shoot three.

I see these five working seamlessly in the fast break. Any one of these players is talented enough to lead the break off the dribble. All are competent enough passers and unselfish enough to make the smart play and get the easy open look. Their length against an opposing small ball lineup would cause issues in trying to prevent alley oops and dunks on the break.

Defensively is where this unit would really shine. Small ball lineups typically utilize their advantage of speed against the other team’s height and hope it leads to more points. What the Bucks are able to do is really cool, they can stay big without compromising their defense.

Giannis has the defensive ability to guard forwards playing center while also having the length to guard centers if need be. Even though a normal center could push Giannis around, a team would not be utilizing their center for post ups in a small ball lineup all that often with the intention to backing the other player down. Instead, they would use quick post ups with the intention to either get a shot in less than 2 seconds or pass it out to an open shooter. Giannis should be able to guard anyone for 2 seconds.

Giannis is also one of the best fast break defenders in the league with his combo of speed, wingspan, and athleticism. Any issues he has guarding centers can easily be made up for by swatting and disrupting shots on the break.

Khris is a great wing defender. He is easily one of the best “3 and D” players in the league and with good reason. Khris can bother guards and forwards on the defensive side of the ball. Lineups with him on the floor allowed 102 points per 100 possessions, which is below league average. The Bucks D was really good last season and a big part of that success was Khris. Additionally, he was top 30 in the league in steals per game at 1.5. His ability to steal the ball would help reduce the efficiency of opposing team scoring opportunities.

Michael is third plus defender for this Bucks tall “small ball” lineup. He is a top five defender at the point guard position. Like Khris he reduces the efficiency of opponents scoring opportunities by stealing the ball at a high rate, 1.7 times per game. Along with that, like Khris, his defensive rating while with Milwaukee was 101, below league average.

MCW creates havoc using his height advantage against the opposing point guard. He disrupts shots, gets his hands in the passing lanes, and flat out gets stops. He is exactly what you need to stop the flow of another team’s small ball lineup. Put him on the best ball handler on the floor and let him go to work. He will manufacture inefficiency and create problems.

Add on to this, Michael is an exceptional rebounder at his position. He will help with boxing out and collecting boards. He helps make up for the lack of a traditional center in the game with what he adds on the glass. This will help this Bucks’ small ball lineup rebound like a traditional lineup too, which makes it all the more threatening.

Blake Griffin

(32) dribbles the ball as Jabari Parker (12) defends. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

The defensive weak links are most definitely Vasquez and Parker. Both are below average defenders at their positions. A positive with Parker is he may be able to be put onto the opposing small ball center and that will free up Antetokoumnpo to man up on a more athletic and threatening scorer.

A positive with Vasquez is that MCW will always matchup against the better offensive guard, and typically the primary ball handler. This will make Vasquez’s assignment simple: stay on your man and don’t give up threes. His length and speed should help him get a hand in the face of his guy pretty often and that can bother most shooters enough so they miss.

Obviously, the better Coach Jason Kidd can hide Parker and Vasquez on defense, the more effective this lineup will be. Kidd found ways to hide typically ineffective defenders most of the season which gives hope that he can do it here.

The way this defense switches so fluidly is also a testament to Kidd’s defensive schemes. This Bucks unit should be able to guard any variation of a small ball line up since MCW can defend at least four positions, Khris can defend at least four positions, and Giannis can defend all five. This flexibility will allow Greivis and Jabari to fill in where needed.

The potential for this Bucks team is high. They are set up to have a unique small ball luxury, stay big enough to rebound and defend at a normal sized team’s rate. The shooting/spacing of the Bucks’ tall small ball unit may be lesser than with other teams but their ability to score in a myriad of ways should help them overcome some of the issues.

Kidd has a lot of tools at his disposal this season. If he were to unleash this lineup on the league I believe it would be deadly. It would be near impossible to defend and at the same time challenging to score against. In a world where small ball is becoming so popular, the Milwaukee Bucks may just have the perfect response.

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