Milwaukee Bucks: Clutch time numbers showcase room for improvement

With a 16-9 record, the Milwaukee Bucks have been on a roll lately as they occupy the second seed in the Eastern Conference.

Although they saw their five-game win streak come to an end Wednesday night in their loss to the Phoenix Suns, the Bucks had been dominating their competition over their streak by outscoring them by an average of 20.8 points per game. Running up the score on their opponents is nothing new for Milwaukee this season as they hold a league-leading +9.5 point differential.

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With numbers like that, the Bucks have not had many opportunities to showcase what they can do down the stretch in close games. As the NBA dictates, the clutch is considered the final five minutes of a game where the score is within five points, and the Bucks have certainly not played their best basketball in those scenarios.

This was more evident than ever in their loss to the Suns, which saw the Bucks claw their way back from their second half collapse only to fail to punch in their comeback for good. Milwaukee had their opportunities down the stretch, they just failed to capitalize, which has been a recurring theme this season.

The Milwaukee Bucks will need to improve in the closing minutes of close games when they find themselves in such situations.

With just eight clutch time showings this season, the Bucks rank last in those late-game scenarios among all 30 teams. In these games, the Bucks are just 2-6, the second-worst winning percentage in the entire league. Part of this stems from their league-leading offense coming to a standstill as they have scored the fewest clutch points (56) in the league so far, per NBA.com/stats.

Individually, it is clear that Milwaukee has devoted their trust to Khris Middleton as the go-to-guy down the stretch. Middleton has scored 24 points in those seven appearances, shooting 8-of-13 from the floor, 4-of-8 from deep, and 4-of-4 from the free-throw line. With a 30.5 usage rate, the two-time All-Star has had the basketball in his hands more than anyone else on this team in such scenarios, and he has capitalized during those opportunities.

Following close behind is two- time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo with a 25.5 usage rate as he’s getting his share of opportunities with the game on the line. The Greek Freak has scored 14 points in the clutch on 5-of-10 shooting, including 1-of-3 from behind the arc and 3-of-6 from the charity stripe. Jrue Holiday also finds himself involved in these situations, scoring seven points on 3-of-8 shooting (1-of-3 from deep), with a usage rate of 18.4 in his seven clutch appearances.

The Milwaukee Bucks will have to tune up their performances in the clutch as they continue to appear.

Although Milwaukee’s 2-6 record in crunch time might cause some level of concern, they are three unlucky shots away from being 5-3 in that stretch.

Jayson Tatum’s game-winning 3-pointer in the season opener against the Boston Celtics with time nearly expired was devastating. Giannis Antetokounmpo had a chance to send it to overtime with a pair of free throws, but he ultimately missed the second attempt.

Several games later, the Bucks had the perfect chance to take down the Brooklyn Nets, but Khris Middleton’s triple just missed at the buzzer in another heartbreaking finish. Most recently, the Bucks had a golden opportunity to win against the Suns Wednesday night with the last shot of the game down by one point. However, Antetokounmpo’s mid-range jumper was just off.

Milwaukee has been far from perfect in the closing minutes of close contests, but they deserve their props for not getting themselves in such predicaments in the first place for a majority of the year. However, it goes without saying that not every game will be a double-digit win for the Bucks, as desirable as that would be. These clutch situations will continue to surface down the road, and it will be telling to see how they handle them.

The Bucks have experienced this grueling reality in the postseason for three consecutive years now, and they are undoubtedly looking to rewrite their recent history.