For all of the Milwaukee Bucks fans waiting for them to reach their dominant gear this season, there is no need to wait any longer.
After their 140-113 victory over the Indiana Pacers Monday night, the Bucks are on a seven-game win streak and have won 12 of their last 13 games and are 28-14 on the season. While they still stand two games out of the top seed in the East, the Bucks have fully separated themselves from the rest of the conference, along with the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets.
More from Bucks News
- Bucks 2023-24 player profile: Can MarJon Beauchamp take a leap?
- Piecing together the Milwaukee Bucks’ dream starting 5 in 5 years
- Predicting Thanasis Antetokounmpo’s 2023-24 stats for the Bucks
- Grade the trade: Bucks land reputable backup guard in swap with Pacers
- New workout video should have Milwaukee Bucks fans excited
While they still have work in achieving their final form, the Bucks that we’ve grown accustomed to seeing has come back into the picture, though with a different twist.
What are some of the most impressive statistics that have helped propel the Milwaukee Bucks during this stretch? Let’s dive in.
Giannis Antetokounmpo’s playmaking has been front and center for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has been no stranger to playing dominant basketball, just as his reigning back-to-back MVP honors suggest.
Now as Antetokounmpo has been playing some of his best basketball of his career as of late, the Greek superstar’s distribution and ability to control the game with his passing has been absolutely sublime.
Over Milwaukee’s seven-game win streak, Antetokounmpo is averaging 9.8 assists, which has helped him compile four triple-doubles over this stretch and raise his season average to a career-high 6.4 assists per game this year. There was no better display of Antetokounmpo’s passing evolution than in the Bucks’ recent win over the San Antonio Spurs where he put up a career-high 15 assists.
Given the attention he regularly commands from opposing defenses, Antetokounmpo’s precision and ability to pick out open Bucks shooters has never been more prevalent. Per pbpstats.com, Antetokounmpo has created the most assists that have led to 3-point shots this season.
Of course, Antetokounmpo’s familiarity with his teammates and institutional knowledge only goes so far with such shooters being able to hit the shots that Antetokounmpo generates. And it’s here where the Bucks’ improved shotmaking has helped take Antetokounmpo’s playmaking to new heights.
Jrue Holiday’s return has lifted the Milwaukee Bucks over their win streak
The Bucks have felt the all-around impact of Jrue Holiday all season long, even over the 10 games he missed as a result of having COVID-19 last month.
It was at the start of the Bucks’ win streak where Holiday has come back and has steadily built up his minutes workload following his extended absence. In fact, it was Holiday’s calm game-winning shot in the Bucks’ thrilling victory over the Memphis Grizzlies before the All-Star break that helped kick off this current win streak.
Over the Bucks’ seven-game win streak, Holiday is averaging 18.1 points on .490/.433/.941 shooting, 5.1 assists, 5 rebounds and 1.6 steals across his 31 minutes per game.
Holiday’s return to fill health and in the Bucks’ starting lineup has continued the dominance that has gone on for the Bucks, especially when he’s playing alongside the likes of Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton.
Per NBA.com/stats, the Bucks are outscoring their opponents by +12.4 points per 100 possessions in the 573 minutes they’ve played together this season. And over the Bucks’ win streak, that’s only amplified as those three have a +21.2 net rating in the 102 minutes they’ve played together (small sample size, I know).
Holiday’s well-rounded play and defensive importance continues to show in each every game he dons a Bucks uniform. Now coming off his career night against the Indiana Pacers, Holiday holds the keys to why this season may be different for the Bucks come playoff time.
The Milwaukee Bucks have had some 3-point luck from their opponents
Of course, when the Bucks have rattled off consecutive wins out of the All-Star break, they have had some luck on their side.
That’s best seen by the fact their opponents are shooting 33.2 percent from downtown over this stretch, which is the third-lowest mark in the league. That has come while the Bucks are allowing 39.1 3-point attempts per game to their opponents, the second-highest mark in the league.
While Milwaukee has made more of an effort to make opposing 3-point looks tougher as they have evolved their defense beyond their drop-back scheme, it’s obviously helped that they have faced against shooting-challenged teams.
Even so, the Bucks have still allowed a high rate of open 3-point looks and their opponents are shooting 32.7 percent on the wide-open looks the Bucks have allowed over this stretch.
This is certainly where luck plays into the Bucks’ run at the moment and there will come a time when they won’t be so lucky and/or come up against a team that is capable of dissecting and pulling apart the Bucks’ defense. Continuing to adjust and offer up different defensive coverages will go a long way in neutralizing this long-standing flaw the Bucks have had under Mike Budenholzer.
Whether the Bucks can continue their win streak as they get set to host the scuffling Boston Celtics Wednesday night remains to be seen, but they reassumed their juggernaut status at this point in their run.