Milwaukee Bucks Grades, Reactions From 101-95 Victory Over The Phoenix Suns

Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Reactions: The Bad

• There’s a lot of positives that O.J. Mayo brings to this team–most notably a blacktop toughness that no one else except Bayless seems to play with. He won’t take nonsense from other players and seems to play with passion. Sometimes that attitude can recoil and hit him in the face. That was the case when Mayo chased down T.J. Warren on a fast break and attempted to break up an easy layup. Instead of breaking up the play, he grabbed Warren’s shoulder and twisted him around in mid-air, drawing a flagrant one foul. Warren made both of the free throws and Jon Leuer hit a three pointer with the possession, turning an 81-77 Suns advantage into a 86-77 Suns lead.

• Jabari Parker‘s rookie season ended on the Sun’s floor last December. It seems like the ghosts of “Talking Stick Resort Arena” (lol) are still haunting him. He scored just seven points on 2-7 shooting, with six rebounds, one assist, and one steal. It’s not like he was jacking up outside jumpers all day–he was simply missing at the rim. He didn’t look like his usual dangerous self–that’s something that we all hope he leaves behind in Arizona.

• Once again the Bucks played to the level of their competition. After letting a big lead slip away on the road against the NBA’s best team you might expect the Bucks to attack the weaker Suns and play with the same level of intensity as they did Friday night…As always that was not the case. The Bucks did rush out to a ten points lead, but in true Bucks fashion seemed to realize that they didn’t need to play that hard. So the Suns went ahead and responded with a big run. I think I speak for the whole Bucks community when I say they need to play more consistently.

Next: Milwaukee Bucks Grades: Starters