Milwaukee Bucks: 3 things to watch for against rival Philadelphia 76ers

Who will step up on the Milwaukee Bucks bench against the Philadelphia 76ers?

After a couple of encouraging games from bench players like Jordan Nwora against the Detroit Pistons and the first half against the Knicks, the well ran dry against the Wizards and the Bucks got a combined 13 points off the bench.

For a roster that I said was the deepest and best roster the Bucks have assembled in decades, that can’t happen. Bobby Portis is still finding his legs after missing the entirety of the preseason, but through his first five games, he has posted a 41.4 percent true shooting. Although it’s nice he’s embracing the Milwaukee area code, he has to get going soon.

Nwora and Hood are competing for minutes in similar roles but neither has done much offensively to discern who should get more. Nwora has a 47.9 percent true shooting while Hood is at 49.8 percent. No offense to him, but it’s a bit concerning when Justin Robinson has the best true shooting of any consistent Bucks reserve this season! Shoutout to Robinson for holding down the point guard rotation minutes while Jrue Holiday was out, though.

Of course, you can’t rely on reserve players to be consistent offensively all the time, there are bound to be highs and lows, and it’s harder when two of your key reserves (George Hill, Pat Connaughton) have been starting a lot of games out of necessity so far.

They need a spark and hopefully for them that comes tonight against a Sixers team that is dealing with their health problems. Perhaps that spark will be another one of the most violent acts that Sixers radio man Tom McGinnis has ever seen!

Before the five-game road trip, I thought this would be a game the Bucks would drop (barring their own health issues), but also thought they’d win against the Wizards. Guess this will even things out, hopefully.