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Milwaukee Bucks: Sterling Brown’s preseason form warrants starter consideration

By Jordan Treske

WASHINGTON, DC -  OCTOBER 13: Sterling Brown #23 of the Milwaukee Bucks handles the ball against the Washington Wizards during a pre-season game on October 13, 2019 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC -  OCTOBER 13: Sterling Brown #23 of the Milwaukee Bucks handles the ball against the Washington Wizards during a pre-season game on October 13, 2019 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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As speculation continues to swirl over who will fill the vacancy within the Milwaukee Bucks’ starting lineup ahead of the 2019-20 season kicking off, Sterling Brown showed why he’s deserving of consideration with his preseason play.

We’re just a few days away from the start of the Milwaukee Bucks’ 2019-20 campaign and it’s safe to say anticipation from Bucks fans is quite high.

That’s only natural considering how the Bucks completely overhauled and fashioned themselves into title contenders throughout their 60-win season last year and expectations are sky high as the Bucks aim to reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 1974.

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And judging by their preseason play, the Bucks themselves are ready to get on with the show as they displayed by compiling their undefeated run through the preseason.

While very few, if any, concerns exist over the Bucks’ current roster going into their regular season opener against the Houston Rockets on Thursday night, one of the biggest questions remaining centers around who head coach Mike Budenholzer tabs to fill the vacancy in the team’s starting unit previously occupied by Malcolm Brogdon.

Of course, conventional wisdom points to Coach Bud turning to one of the Bucks’ new veteran wings to fill such a position, with Wesley Matthews being the popular choice. And while the Bucks rotated through their roster in each and every game, Matthews did get the nod in their preseason finale, which is notable with Budenholzer looking to treat their rotation as something we’ll see going into the year.

However, as Matthews didn’t exactly put together the most encouraging of impressions throughout his preseason minutes, Sterling Brown demonstrated why he’s worthy of initially getting the starting 2-guard role in the Bucks’ starting five.

The third-year wing already has familiarity in getting minutes with the Bucks’ trusty starting lineup as he filled in for both Brogdon and Tony Snell late into the Bucks’ regular season campaign and for the Bucks’ first five playoff games. Although that virtually shuttered off Brown’s postseason minutes after that, perhaps the 23-year-old used that as motivation going into the 2019-20 campaign.

Over his four preseason appearances, Brown averaged 8.8 points on 12-of-21 shooting from the field (57.1 percent), 5-for-7 from downtown (71.4 percent), 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 19.9 minutes per contest. And that includes an 18-point outing in the Bucks’ preseason win over the Washington Wizards.

Brown has been particularly confident in knocking down shots off the dribble and pulling up from three, something that he has flashed over his first two seasons in Milwaukee. Should the improvements he made as a finisher hold from his sophomore year, Brown figures to be a more multi-dimensional threat, similar to the kind of contributions that Brogdon dazzlingly provided throughout all of last season.

Brown doesn’t profile as the catch-and-shoot threat that Matthews or Kyle Korver have long been over their veteran careers, respectively, and the Bucks prioritize spacing the floor in order for their star pieces like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton to thrive. And regardless of whether he gets the starting nod from Budenholzer going into the season, Brown has to improve on the growing consistency he has shown with the Bucks.

Heading into his third year, Brown knows that he and the rest of the Bucks’ deep wing rotation are all expected to supply the production and skills that Brogdon provided throughout the Bucks’ first season under Budenholzer and Co., as he discussed during his Media Day session:

"“We’re going to go out there and do what we do. Playing within the system, and being aggressive on both ends. Malcolm brought a lot, both offensively and defensively, you know his leadership, his vocal leadership. But we’ll just go out there and play the game and just have fun with it. I feel like we’ve got the right group of guys to fill that gap.”"

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With the bold decision to move on from Brogdon, the Bucks turning to a committee approach to fill his services will be a season-long storyline. And it’s with this opportunity that Brown could end up showing why he may the most viable option for the Bucks in the long run. Time will tell if that’s the case.

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