3 eye-caching takeaways from Milwaukee Bucks’ perfect 5-0 homestand

Bobby Portis played the best basketball of his career over the Milwaukee Bucks’ five-game homestand

Without Lopez, Portis has stepped into the starting lineup for 14 of his 10 appearances for the Bucks this year. The big man is having his best season to date with the larger opportunity, which should be evident over this five-game stretch, where he went on a tear.

In his last five games, Portis has averaged 19.8 points while shooting 57.1 percent from the floor and 60 percent from 3-point range. With Middleton looking to find his footing over these past few games following a bout with covid and Grayson Allen struggling to see his shots fall, this improved scoring from Portis has been beyond welcoming. Whether it was behind the arc, in the mid-range, or in the lane, the big man would not be stopped offensively.

He had also been a significant factor on the glass by pulling down 10.8 rebounds per game, which was the second-most on the team behind Antetokounmpo’s 12.6 on average. Yet, Portis led them in offensive rebounds with 3.4 per game as he consistently battled below to the hoop to keep the Bucks battling for second-chance points on the offensive end. Hustle is nothing new for Portis, but it was undeniably on full display throughout this stretch of games, and the Fiserv Forum crowd let Portis know how much they appreciate it as they erupted with, “Bobby! Bobby! Bobby!” chants on several occasions.

After this run, Portis is now averaging 15.7 points and 8.6 rebounds for the season, both of which are career-highs for the 26-year-old. He has been fantastic for Milwaukee this year and has not shown any signs of slowing down.