Milwaukee Bucks Grades, Reactions From 115-100 Loss To Cleveland Cavaliers

Milwaukee Bucks Grades: Starters

Michael Carter-Williams, C-

9 Points | 4-11 FG | 1-2 FT | 1 REB | 5 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK |

Honestly, MCW isn’t as bad as the critics say. But with the Brandon Knight conversation whirling around heading into Thursday’s game, it’s easy to see why fans see his game coming up short. He can’t shoot (1-5 on jumpers), his shot selection is iffy, and his turnovers are the worst. He’s going to have to show a lot more or the trade deadline could become a really interesting conversation.

Khris Middleton, B

15 Points| 4-10 FG | 7-7 FT | 1 REB | 4 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK |

He took a flagrant foul from Richard Jefferson at the end of the third, capping a quarter in which Middleton scored eight points, helping the Bucks get back into the contest. He has yet to have an explosive performance, but that was never really his game. He’s best at scoring in bunches and if anything should let it fly more–as evidenced by his confident third quarter shooting.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, A+

33 Points | 12-15 FG | 8-8 FT | 5 REB | 2 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK |

It was perhaps the finest performance of his career. More impressively, it came with LeBron James as the primary defender. It would be one thing to get excited about the highlight reel dunks–that’s something the Bucks have enjoyed daily in Giannis’ career. But the way he handled the ball, attacked LeBron, finished in traffic, and shot the ball are all things that should have fans giddy.

Jabari Parker, B+

14 Points | 6-10 FG | 2-2 FT | 3 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK |

Kevin Love should send him an apology. The way he undercut Jabari on a lost play is simply unacceptable. From a more insidious angle, it would be easy to understand why Love would take down Jabari–he’s been putting the man on posters since entering the league. We have yet to see Jabari take over a game, but we’ve seen signs of the tools being there. It won’t be long now.

Greg Monroe, B

17 Points| 7-14 FG | 3-7 FT | 8 REB | 1 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK |

Monroe turned in a strong performance despite getting hammered in the paint all night. He lost track of Anderson Varejao, of all people, but overall did a good job of keeping Cavs players in front of him. His jumper has been questionable lately, shooting just 1-4 from ten feet or more in Cleveland.

Next: Grades: Bench