Milwaukee Bucks Roundtable: Assessing the mixed start to the season

1. It’s been a mixed start so far, but what are your key thoughts and feelings about the Bucks through six games?

Ryan Dean (@rybread120): We all know that this has not been the start we were all hoping for, but I feel that this start helps the Bucks to gauge what they need to work on and where they need improvement. Yes, a 6-0 start would’ve been ideal but I think that early losses will only benefit the Bucks in the end. I think the most recent games against the Magic and Raptors proved how good the Bucks can be this season. One was an example of a 32-point blowout that fans became accustomed to last season, and the other was an example of closing out games in the final few minutes. Giannis proved how good of a leader he can be, and we saw how dominant the bench can be in spite of injuries. We saw players like Donte DiVincenzo, Sterling Brown, and George Hill step up when called upon.

I think fans should stay positive and understand that under Mike Budenholzer, this team has the ability to return to the caliber at which they played much of the 2018-19 season.

Jordan Treske (@JordanTreske): I think it’s only natural for all Bucks fans to want to see the Bucks come out of the gate rolling on all cylinders as they did to start last year’s run. And given what’s at stake this season, it’d be incredibly reassuring to see. But it’s obviously been a bumpier ride than we all thought it’d be to kick off the year and the third quarter lapses the Bucks have had in each of their losses, as well as in some of their wins like against the Toronto Raptors, have been more than troubling.

Even following their undefeated preseason, it would have been unreasonable to expect the Bucks to be a well-oiled machine against a strong, competitive slate to start the season, but their early issues have been uncharacteristic of the Bucks team we saw throughout all of last year.

Logan Beatty (@Logeyj): My take is that it’s been six games. The competition has been quite stiff and you could probably argue (and you’d be right) that five of the six teams the Bucks have played will make the playoffs. Has it been ugly at times? Absolutely. Has it been awesome at times? Darn tootin’. But I don’t feel comfortable making declarative statements about the team after two weeks. They’re clearly still feeling out the rotation and they just have to realize that as one of the big dogs of the conference, teams are going to be gunning for you night in and night out. If the Bucks continue to hang around the middle of the pack in allowed opponent shooting percentage and continue to blow 20 point leads, then we can start to freak out a little more.

Joseph Corrao (@Joey_Corrao22): I think it’s fair to say that there have been obvious disappointments across the first six games of the season, but the Bucks are standing at 4-2 and currently tied for the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference. The problem with that record is the Milwaukee Bucks could have been easily 6-0, but instead blew large leads against the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics. It is early in the season, so I still don’t think there’s anything to be extremely alarmed about just yet. I especially think this because the Bucks have beaten some pretty decent teams including the Houston Rockets, Toronto Raptors, and the Orlando Magic. All three of those teams being playoff teams last year and very well could be playoff teams this year as well.

The two losses were incredibly frustrating, but Coach Budenholzer quite possibly could use them as learning moments for the team. The Bucks have to keep their foot on the gas the entirety of the game. You can not afford to get complacent in the NBA because it is not unusual for opponents to go on large runs. Basketball is referred to as “a game of runs” for a reason. The Toronto game almost ended up as another huge lead blown, but the Bucks pulled away in the end. I think the biggest glaring issue so far is fixing the struggles during the second half. The Heat, Celtics, and Raptors games are examples of this issue. The Bucks and Coach Bud need to find ways to stop the huge runs and make adjustments to combat that. The Bucks have a telling stretch of games coming up, and that will be a very good indicator of where they stand going forward.

Dan Larsen (@DanLarsen34): This may not be a satisfying answer, but it’s been decidedly mixed.

On the one hand, the Bucks have had several runs in the first six games where they’ve looked a lot like the team we saw make it to the Eastern Conference Finals this past spring. They’ve had solid quarters on the offensive end where they’ve pushed the tempo, moved well on and off the ball, and generated some great looks which they’ve been able to take advantage of. They’ve also been downright dominant at times on the other end of the floor, something that was on full display in their incredible first half performance against the Toronto Raptors on Saturday night.

However, the issues that have reared their head in the bad periods they’ve had in those first six games suggest there may be some deeper issues they’ll need to deal with. Eric Bledsoe has struggled with consistency to start the year. Wesley Matthews has, thus far, been unable to find his shot. Brook Lopez and Robin Lopez have been exploited on defense in certain situations. Many of their problems will iron themselves out, but others, like their potential weakness in the back court, might not.

Adam McGee (@AdamMcGee11): The Bucks haven’t been close to their best, clearly have some issues to iron out, and could very easily be 6-0 right now. Simply finding ways to win in their last two has been incredibly encouraging to me. Taking the big picture view right now, my take on the first six games is much closer to nothing to see here than I think it seems to be for many Bucks fans right now.