Defending without fouling
The hands-high principle that was emphasized by Jason Kidd and his assistants has survived any of the early adjustments to the Bucks’ scheme under Budenholzer, but with one important caveat: The Bucks want to do everything in their power to avoid fouls.
Fouls have been an ongoing issue for Milwaukee in recent years, as not only have they developed a habit for giving up an abundance of easy points at the line, but that’s also led to key players having to sit with foul trouble.
Under Budenholzer, avoiding such headaches will be among the team’s top priorities. Through two preseason games so far, the Bucks have shown what both sides of that coin look like.
The Bucks fouled just 12 times in their opener against the Bulls, yet followed that up with 30 personal fouls in what was a foul-plagued contest on both sides against the Timberwolves.
Speaking to Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel following the Bucks’ film session on Monday, Antetokounmpo said on the subject:
"“They’ve talked to us, we’ve had meetings as a team and they’ve told us we cannot put our hands on the offensive player or stop their movement, so we’ve got to get used to it.”"
Some of Budenholzer’s adjustments may take effect immediately, yet based on Milwaukee’s long-term habits, this could be one change that takes a little bit more time to bed in.
With that in mind, it’s certainly an area worth monitoring closely on Tuesday night.
The game will be televised by Fox Sports Wisconsin and NBA TV, with tip-off from Chesapeake Arena scheduled for 7pm CT.