With two Australian players on their roster, the Milwaukee Bucks should be involved the next time the NBA and NBL play some friendly matches.
In a very fun turn of events for two players on the Milwaukee Bucks in particular, the NBA and NBL (Australia’s National Basketball League) are collaborating to play three cross-league games in early October. This marks the first time NBL teams have faced off with NBA teams in America.
What. A. Time. To. Be. Alive.
— NBL (@NBL) August 1, 2017
The collaboration we've all been waiting for... @NBL x @NBA
More at ➮ https://t.co/y4LvyIsYbf pic.twitter.com/stOmUop9jj
The Utah Jazz host the Sydney Kings on October 2, the Oklahoma City Thunder host the Melbourne United on October 8, and the Phoenix Suns host the Brisbane Bullets on October 13. This is a cool thing — basketball is an international sport, so why not have some international fun before the regular season kicks off.
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Here’s the problem. The Bucks happen to boast two of the league’s few Australian players. Thon Maker and Matthew Dellavedova are both Australian by nationality, making Milwaukee tied for first in having the most Australian players (more on the other first-place team in those particular standings in a moment).
The Bucks should get one of those games! It’s true that Milwaukee is farther north than any of those three teams, but still, if teams are coming all the way from Australia they can come a little bit farther. Besides, as Delly pointed out, some games Down Under would be a blast for everybody involved too.
https://twitter.com/matthewdelly/status/892195724221337601
Maybe that’s what the NBL and NBA are waiting for to include Milwaukee in the mix here. Sending Giannis Antetokounmpo down to Australia sounds like good times all around.
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Anyway, there could be a hypothetical argument made that it would be weird for Australian NBA players to play against their NBL counterparts, except the only other team (that I’m aware of) with more than one Australian player, the Utah Jazz, are hosting the first game!
After his dynamic performance in the 2016 Olympics, Dellavedova deserves a shot to participate in the next NBL/NBA crossover series. The NBA preseason is kind of dumb in its standard form, but mixing in Australian teams just gives the whole thing a breath of fresh air. And any (substantially overblown for entertainment’s sake) outrage over the Bucks not being involved will quickly be forgetten if Milwaukee does get in the next round of NBL/NBA games.
Next: Milwaukee Bucks: Examining the offseasons to date of playoff rivals
Having the Milwaukee Bucks be involved in the series would make it even better for Bucks fans, but it should still be fun to watch some other Australians throw down against truly tough NBA competition as the 2017-18 regular season draws near.