Just Kidding: How Jason Kidd Turned the Bucks into Winners

Nov 7, 2014; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd during the first quarter against the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

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I’ve typed it about a thousand or so times in my articles, but it bears repeating: The Milwaukee Bucks (aka Milwaukee Grinders) were terrible last season. It keeps coming up because there is such a stark contrast between last year’s disastrous campaign and this season.

It’s worth mentioning because the Bucks, over one off-season full of moves that most casual NBA fans didn’t notice aside from the team drafting Jabari Parker, have become a solid playoff team that could win 30 games by the All-Star week. That would be double the games the Bucks won all last season.

Like any turnaround in sports, there are several factors that are propelling the Bucks’ rise from the bottom of the league to be a top-15 team in the NBA. The addition of some key players during the off-season and the continued development of some young players (especially Brandon Knight, Khris Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo) are certainly huge reasons why the Bucks are so much better. But the biggest reason has to be Milwaukee’s newest head coach.

Jan 31, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd talks with guard Jerryd Bayless (19) during the third quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Jason Kidd’s arrival in Milwaukee was a bit of a controversy in itself. Kidd was criticized for his failed coup of the Brooklyn Nets, who alleged Kidd demanded a move to Milwaukee when Brooklyn refused to grant him the same sort of power a GM would have. Two second-round draft picks (the Bucks’ 2015 and 2019 picks to be specific) later, the Bucks had fired Larry Drew and were welcoming Kidd as their new head coach.

At first many Bucks’ fans (and writers like myself) were confused. Although not many (if any) believed Larry Drew to be a long-term solution at head coach, it seemed harsh to let him go on a moment’s notice to welcome Kidd to Milwaukee. These concerns have been alleviated and then some. As they say; winning cures everything. And the Bucks have been winning under Kidd.

Milwaukee is currently 29-23 with one game to go before the All-Star week. If the team wins their last game before the break (against Sacramento) and then just finishes the year at a .500 clip the Milwaukee Bucks will win somewhere around 45 games. Literally tripling the wins of last season. Player development and adding Jared, Jerryd, Zaza and Uncle Buck helps, but that kind of significant change in a team’s place in the standings is more than some veterans playing well. It’s a change in culture.

Jason Kidd seems to be coaching his players to be good at the same things Kidd was: tough defense, sharp passing, stealing the ball and efficient scoring. The Bucks have been good at a lot of these facets of the game this season, but they’ve been downright excellent at one in particular: defense. The Bucks rank second to only Golden State in efficiency this season, an astounding feat considering that last season the Bucks finished second-last in that category.

Kidd employs an interesting system built upon help defense. Essentially the Bucks swarm to whoever has the basketball. If a player tries to drive to the hoop at least two (and usually three) Bucks instantly show up to contest the basket. If the opposing player with the ball dishes it out to a teammate whoever is closest rushes to that opposing player while the rest of the team resets and re-groups.

“Great players, if they only see two bodies, they think, ‘Maybe I can still beat ’em,’” Kidd explains. “But if they see three bodies, they think, ‘Maybe I need to get off of it.’”

That quote and a much better explanation of the Bucks’ defensive schemes can be found in this Zach Lowe article from December.

Jan 29, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd (left) talks with referee Ken Mauer (41) during the second quarter of an NBA basketball game at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

The Bucks have been good at more than just defense under Kidd, however. In the article about Brandon Knight I linked to above I mentioned that having Kidd as his coach seemed to be helping Knight be a better passing point guard. That increased passing ability has not only resonated with Knight though. The Bucks rank seventh in the NBA in assists per game, moving them up ten spots from last season when the Bucks ranked 17th.

In addition to playing ~~good~~ great defense and moving the ball better, Kidd has instilled active hands onto his young team here in Milwaukee. The Bucks rank third in steals so far this season, a huge leap forward from the third-worst ranking they held in the NBA last season. Whatever Kidd is doing with this team during practices and team meetings is clearly working.

One last aspect of Kidd’s point guard game that has rubbed off on the Bucks is efficient scoring. This season Milwaukee ranks ninth in free throw shooting, fifth in field goal shooting and third in three-point shooting. Those numbers mean that the Bucks are one of the five best shooting teams in the NBA, up there with powerhouse squads like the Warriors and Hawks. Last season Milwaukee was among the tenworst teams in the Association in all three of those categories (including a stagnant 26th in field goal shooting).

As I mentioned earlier, many people were skeptical of the Bucks’ then-new owners pulling the trigger to acquire Jason Kidd before this season. I realized later that there is a reason that Marc Lasry and Wesley Edens had enough money to purchase the Milwaukee Bucks: they know how to seize on opportunities. They saw that Kidd did a pretty damn good job with a complicated and old Nets team last season, and when they realized they could replace Larry Drew (who had just led the Bucks all the way to the bottom of the NBA) with Kidd they knew that it was too good of an opportunity to pass up on.

Their trade of two second-round draft picks for Kidd seems like a steal right now. Most seasons Kidd would probably win Coach of the Year (unfortunately Steve Kerr and Mike Budenholzer had to go and have historically good seasons with their teams), a pretty good asset to receive for two late draft picks. So far it seems like this Jason Kidd experiment has succeeded in Milwaukee.

And as for Larry Drew? He had to go be an assistant coach to a team who has some scrubs named LeBron and Kyrie on their roster (that was sarcasm. LeBron James and Kyrie Irving are quite good. Drew really is an assistant coach for Cleveland these days though). I guess this is one of those rare stories that has a happy ending.

Next: NBA Trade Deadline: 5 Big Men For The Milwaukee Bucks To Consider