The Milwaukee Bucks Are Owning The Future

Though it doesn’t show in the win-loss column, the Milwaukee Bucks have found success on the backs of their core three, bringing new hope for the future

How quickly things can change! A little over a month ago, much of the discussion of the Milwaukee Bucks focused on what a disappointing season they were going through.

At the All-Star Break, the team sat a a disappointing 22-32 record, well out of playoff contention.

Outside of the occasional big game from Giannis Antetokounmpo and a hot stretch from Khris Middleton, there were few highlights in this dark season.

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Major question marks surrounded the roster as well. Could Giannis Antetokounmpo really be a star player without a jump shot and was he playing too selfish? Would Jabari Parker find his footing, or would he be the next in a long line of second overall draft busts? Could Khris Middleton do more than be a three and D wing who provides floor spacing and actually become a consistent contributor in other ways?

All of these questions weighed on critics and fans alike. ESPN’s Zach Lowe questioned whether Parker has a true position in the NBA and whether he could be effective given his lack of ability to space the floor and play defense.

Brewhoop’s Frank Madden suggested that the Bucks may have been better off with Bobby Portis playing Jabari Parker’s minutes after a loss to the Chicago Bulls on January 6th.

In addition, some were suggesting that Antetokounmpo was playing too selfish and that he was more concerned with scoring than getting his teammates involved on offense.

The overall attitude towards the team was at a new low. All of the hope that the fans had going into this season was gone. Suddenly, the near certainty of future success was replaced with the darkness of doubt.

Since the All-Star Break, however, many of these concerns have been quelled. Though their record doesn’t reflect it, the Milwaukee Bucks have found significant success on the back of their core players, bringing new found hope for the future.

Many were willing to dismiss their success in the first few games after the All-Star Break as an aberration. However, the Bucks core three players have maintained their level of success on a nightly basis.

Coach Jason Kidd made a major change which paid major dividends on the court. Instead of running the offense through Michael Carter-Williams and Greg Monroe, Kidd handed the keys to the offense off to Antetokounmpo.

Since becoming the primary facilitator, Antetokounmpo has taken his game to a whole another level. In 12 games in the month of March, Antetokounmpo has averaged 20.6 points per game with 7.8 boards and 8.1 assists per game.

Night in and night out, Antetokounmpo is a threat to put up a triple-double. With his length and vision, which is exceptional for a 21-year-old, Antetokounmpo has turned himself into a nearly unguardable player.

In addition, Antetokounmpo’s defensive performance has taken a major step forward from earlier in the season. He’s begun to learn how to position himself better and just how much space he can afford to give his man when he’s trying to help inside. As a result, Antetokounmpo has been getting more blocks and steals than he was earlier in the season.

Even in Wednesday night’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Antetokounmpo managed to record 24 points, six rebounds and six assists against arguably the best wing player in the NBA in LeBron James:

In a matter of a month, Antetokounmpo has gone from a borderline All-Star wing, to looking like a top 15 player in the league. But don’t just take my word for it! Many in the national media are getting back aboard the Giannis hype train as well: See here and here.

Antetokounmpo, however, has not been the only one to find success since the All-Star Break. Jabari Parker has also taken his game to a whole new level.

Since Antetokounmpo became the point guard of the offense, Parker has found himself much more involved on the offensive end. Instead of sitting near the corners and waiting to make a cut or a pass, Parker is finding many more opportunities to score.

First, Parker is almost unguardable when driving to the basket, possessing superior footwork and explosiveness. Since the change, Parker has had many more opportunities to run on the break.

As a result, Parker is getting many more chances to drive, and he’s making the most of those opportunities to do things like this:

Parker’s also begun to find the jump shot that alluded him for so much of the season. Instead of passing or trying to drive when he has an open look, Parker’s begun to take those open shots and is starting to hit them with some consistency.

In addition, his fade-away jumper, which was one of his go to moves at Duke, has also returned with some consistency, giving him a wider range of options on offense.

It comes as no surprise then that Parker has averaged 16.7 points and 5.1 boards per game in the month of March. Though he still finds himself as the third or fourth option at times, Parker has demonstrated that he’s more than capable of being the elite scoring forward that we expected out of college.

Finally, Khris Middleton has also gotten in on the fun as well.

Like Antetokounmpo, Middleton found some success earlier in the season. However, since the Bucks have moved their offensive focus onto their core three, Middleton has been consistently good, averaging 18.5 points and 4.6 assists on an effective 47.5 percent from the field in the month of March.

Middleton is the cog that makes the Bucks offense function as effectively as it has with Antetokounmpo at the point. By providing spacing off the ball, Middleton gives Antetokounmpo and Parker much more space to work with.

In addition, Middleton has shown he can also work as an effective secondary distributor, and has also been the go to guy when the shot clock is winding down because of his ability to hit difficult step-backs and fades.

The most important aspect of their success, however, isn’t just the numbers their posting. It’s been the chemistry and understanding these guys are showing when on the floor together.

For so much of the season, the on-court chemistry was off and never seemed to improve. But, since coach Kidd made the call to make the offense run through the team’s best players, the chemistry has significantly improved.

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• Piecing together the Milwaukee Bucks’ dream starting 5 in 5 years
• Predicting Thanasis Antetokounmpo’s 2023-24 stats for the Bucks
• Grade the trade: Bucks land reputable backup guard in swap with Pacers
• New workout video should have Milwaukee Bucks fans excited

The view of this season has changed in a big way. Any of the doubt or fear that arose just a few weeks ago has been replaced by the optimism that surrounded the team when this season began. No longer are we talking about what Antetokounmpo or Parker might become. We’re seeing their improvement every single night.

What the core three has proven over the past month and a half is that, with a revamp to the supporting cast, this team is more than capable of being an NBA title contender within the next five years.

This team possesses the best trio of players of any young and coming team and has one, in Antetokounmpo, who may just become one of the best three players in the NBA.

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Thus, despite what their record will ultimately show at the end of 82 games, there is real reason to believe that this team will Own The Future.