Milwaukee Bucks: Chemistry could be key to thriving in Orlando

Great chemistry has been key to the Milwaukee Bucks’ success all season long, and it could be even more important as they finish the season in Orlando.

With NBA teams having arrived in Orlando to take their place at the Walt Disney World Resort in recent days, a new and unfamiliar reality will begin for the players.

Even in a league with an 82-game regular season, and road trips and travel providing ample opportunity for team bonding, players have never been forced into spending time together quite like they will over the next few months.

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As a result, you can guarantee more chatter than ever before about team dynamics, and it’s a real possibility that chemistry could play a larger role than usual in the destination of this year’s championship.

If that does prove to be the case, it may well be good news for the Milwaukee Bucks, a team whose on-court production already has them placed squarely among the frontrunners to win it all in Orlando.

Ever since Mike Budenholzer arrived in Milwaukee and helped to set in motion a larger reset of the team’s culture and system, the strong relationships that were in place were something that was apparent to him. Ahead of the Conference Finals last season, Coach Bud spoke of that to Tom Oates of the Wisconsin State Journal:

"“I think the chemistry that this group has has been cooking in the oven really since the summer,” said Budenholzer, citing the players’ penchant for getting together for non-mandatory workouts and open gyms throughout the offseason. “All of that was happening before there was a single win. And you could see it and feel it at that time, in that phase. To be honest with you, the day I got here, (I saw that) this is a group that likes each other, that gets along. I think there’s a respect for each other, an understanding of each other that’s in a really good place.”"

The truth is the Bucks’ chemistry has only developed further in the year that has passed since.

With their first real taste of contention, the Bucks took a painful lesson at the hands of the Raptors, and united in their attempts to not suffer the same fate this year.

A renewed vigor and a common purpose may well have set the returning roster members up well for success this year anyway, but the additions of Robin Lopez, Wesley Matthews, Kyle Korver, and Thanasis Antetokounmpo have only continued to bolster the positive atmosphere that was in place.

The Bucks’ locker room is quite clearly a place of fun, but also one that’s packed with players who are almost singularly focused on victory. There have been no real instances of discord or discontent in Milwaukee this year, and while the set-up in Orlando may fray nerves on other teams, there’s little reason to believe that will be a major issue for the Bucks.

In fact, speaking to media before his team headed off for Orlando, Coach Bud illustrated how everyone had stayed in touch during their time apart in recent months, and how he anticipates those already strong relationships growing even stronger over the remainder of the 2019-20 season in the campus environment.

"“We’ve certainly been able to, whether it’s been with the staff or the players, to I think keep a really high degree of connectivity, and continue to foster those relationships that make a difference for us when we’re playing and when we are together.And now, you put going to Orlando, and being together on a campus for what we hope will be a really long time. We’re certainly going to have a lot of meals together. We’re going to do everything together. And I think the relationships can grow even deeper, and we’re excited about that. Hopefully there’s not too many brotherly fights! We’ll probably see a little of everything.”"

Next. No complaints from Bucks upon arrival in Orlando. dark

With the current season delivering unprecedented challenges, the Bucks will hope that all of the good work they’ve put in up until now can pay off at the crucial moment.

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