3 Milwaukee Bucks performing below expectation to begin 2021-22 season
Khris Middleton has underwhelmed for the Milwaukee Bucks so far this season
This one pains me and I have little doubt he will get through this, but for now, Khris Middleton has been underwhelming so far this season.
He came out of the gate struggling with his 3-point shot, shooting 25.7 percent in his first six games before testing positive for COVID-19 and missing the next eight games. That in and of itself could explain why Middleton hasn’t played up to his usual standard since returning.
His 3-point jumper has returned, shooting nearly 39 percent from deep on nearly seven attempts per game. It’s a good thing too since he hasn’t found much success with his midrange jumpers, which are typically a staple of his game.
Middleton is shooting around 42 percent on long midrange shots (from 16 feet to the 3-point line) after shooting over 45 percent on those looks last season and over 52 percent two seasons ago. The bigger concern is that on shots from three to inside of 10 feet from the basket, Middleton is shooting a little over 21 percent. He was over 40 percent the last two seasons on those shots.
His turnover rate is also at a career-high 15.4 percent, which is a bit concerning for a player that already struggled with turning the ball over before this season.
The positives for Middleton are that his 3-point shot is back after struggling to start the season, his foul rate is the highest it’s been since before Mike Budenholzer took over, and his assist rate is at a career-high 25.2 percent.
Middleton has always been a relatively polarizing player not only among Bucks fans but NBA fans as a whole. His season is sort of in the eye of the beholder. Middleton’s true shooting is over 55 percent since returning from COVID-19 and is right in line with his true shooting for the first six seasons with the Bucks (56.2 percent). But after the previous two seasons where his true shooting was around 60 percent, he is being held to a higher standard, which is why I consider it a bit of a disappointment so far.
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Middleton suffered a knee injury against the Boston Celtics and although Budenholzer said after the game that the initial signs were promising that he avoided a serious injury, it seems likely he misses multiple games out as a precaution.