Milwaukee Bucks: 3 things to watch in big matchup vs Los Angeles Lakers
In a meeting between two teams with championship aspirations this season, there is a bit of a damper on the Milwaukee Bucks‘ first matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers this season. Both teams are struggling to begin the season (due in part to injuries for both sides) and there’s a lot of doom and gloom from their respective fanbases. Heck, even the players are getting in on the fun!
In all seriousness, this is a chance for the Bucks to start their five-game homestand with a win against a big market team and head into the remaining four games (against some of the league’s lower-tier teams) with more confidence and get their record back to where we all expect it to be.
The Lakers sit at 8-7 and are coming off of a blowout loss to the Chicago Bulls earlier this week. They have been without LeBron James for the past seven games and per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, James will miss the game against the Bucks as well. Since head coach Mike Budenholzer took over, the Bucks are 4-2 against the Lakers and the games are always very competitive.
Even without some marquee names (primarily James, but the Bucks will still be without Brook Lopez), the Bucks have a chance to pick up a win at home against a team that is not living up to its championship expectations at the moment.
How will Khris Middleton look in his return for the Milwaukee Bucks against the Los Angeles Lakers?
After missing eight straight games due to COVID-19, Khris Middleton is expected to be back for the Bucks tonight against the Lakers. The Bucks have gone 3-5 in Middleton’s absence and need a shot in the arm with his scoring.
All of that being said, we shouldn’t expect too much from Middleton right away. After missing eight games, he will likely be on a minutes restriction — similar to Jrue Holiday after returning from his ankle sprains — and we have to take into account how the layoff due to COVID-19 will affect him.
Looking at last season, Holiday missed 10 games due to COVID-19 and while the severity of the symptoms varies, it is a good rubric for what Middleton’s minutes could look like. Upon Holiday’s return, he played fewer than 30 minutes in his first four games back and averaged 21 minutes per game while only starting one game.
Expect to see something similar with Middleton, especially with a string of games against teams expected to be at the bottom of the standings this season after tonight’s games.
However, there is the temptation to push him to play more minutes quicker because the Bucks are two games below 0.500 and could use a few wins to get the confidence going. That’s not how the Bucks have operated with any injury or illness in the past though and it’s more likely than not we’ll see them take things slowly with their All-Star wing to see how he responds.