BTBP Roundtable: First Impressions of the 2015-16 Milwaukee Bucks

Nov 4, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach

reacts to a call during the third quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

1. What are your overall impressions of the Bucks so far? After their early struggles, they’ve picked up some solid wins against a soft schedule, are you convinced everything is in order so far?

Adam McGee (@AdamMcGee11): There have been glimpses: Monroe and Middleton late on against Philadelphia, Giannis’ jump towards superstardom, and my personal favorite, the Vasquez/Monroe double-team of Brook Lopez.

Overall though, I’d give a resounding no. Bucks haven’t been anywhere close to clicking so far this season. Sure, they’ve won some games they’ve been expected to win, but never really by convincing margins.

Ti Windisch (@TiWindisch): Everything’s not quite in order, but besides just the results of the recent games things do seem in much better shape. The defense is coming around, Khris Middleton is starting to step up and Jabari Parker is back. This team is ready to step up and they have the chance to do it–let’s see if they can.

Jordan Treske (@jtresk26): I’m not convinced that everything’s in order so far, but the slate of teams they played against last week certainly came at the right time for the Bucks to right the ship a bit. There’s still a lot of players coming in and out so far due to injury, but the signs are there that things are coming together and it’s just a matter of it working everything out to get the best out of everyone night in and night out.

Justin Woodard (@WoodardJustin90): After the 0-3 start I thought for sure my somewhat high expectations for this team had gone out the window. But considering the revamped roster with guys getting used to playing with each other I don’t feel so bad.

The current four-game win streak is relieving, but I wouldn’t consider things quite in order since those four wins came against mostly bad teams. Despite the rough start, things are coming together with Giannis becoming more and more a superstar and Jabari being eased back into the mix.

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Jason Kezman (@j_kezman): I am not convinced that we have seen the best of the Milwaukee Bucks. Strong signs of improvement on defense gives me a lot of hope for this Bucks team going forward. I think as the season goes on and players learn to play together, we will see a team capable of beating anyone on any given night.

John Heffernon (@Silky__Johnson): I think they are slowly building team chemistry. Missed games because of injury/suspension have been a theme for the early season struggles (Antetokounmpo, Henson, Parker, Carter-Williams, Mayo, and Ennis). All of the players that have missed time are key contributors and their absences have led to some of the underwhelming performances.

Now that players are slowly starting to return and get healthy, chemistry will develop at a pace most of us expect. I think we also have to realize that Vasquez and Middleton (though he has already started to pick it up) are not going to play as poorly as they have done to start this season.

I think everything is in order so far. They seem to be developing at a healthy rate. As the season goes on I expect the Bucks will be able to compete with better teams regularly.

Aaron Edwards (@Big_Cheez): The Bucks look like a team of young players with lots of potential, but some polishing to do before they’re really dangerous. They’ve continued to look better after each game, and most importantly, Jabari is looking like he’s ready to pick up where he left off. There’s some rust to shake off for him, but he’s been aggressive at getting to the basket, which is what we really needed to see.

Mike Helm (@FrightendInmate): Overall, the Bucks are showing themselves to be an average team. That doesn’t dampen my excitement for them, it just shows that they have similar issues to last season. Defensively they’re improving, (talk more about that later) and offensively, they still bog down and frustrate the fan base for minutes at a time.

I think they’re a better team than last year, but I don’t think they’re significantly better. Not yet. Jabari is still not 100 percent, but he’s on his way and he’s looked great.

Next: Figuring Out The Point Guard Rotation