3 questions for the Milwaukee Bucks heading into the All-Star break

Will Khris Middleton conquer his inconsistency this season and return to form?

Someone who needs a break more than most on the Bucks is Khris Middleton. Coming off of a long championship run, followed up with the Olympics, and then 48 regular season games is a lot for a guy who relies so much on his jumper.

We saw some early fatigue from Middleton, who shot around 31 percent from 3 in his first 11 games. It started to trend up a little bit after that, shooting 37 percent in his next 11 games, and then he really got going, shooting nearly 41 percent in the following 22 games.

He ended with a big dud, shooting under 17 percent in his final four games from 3-point range, making only five triples in that span.

Overall, Middleton is averaging 19.4 points on 57.1 percent true shooting and 51.4 percent effective field goal rate, along with 5.5 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.2 steals. His overall 2-point percentage has come around after the slow start, he’s right around 50 percent on 2s and less than a percent worse than last season.

The real question, of course, is the 3-point shot and if he’ll be able to regain that touch in the final stretch of the season.

Part of me wanted him to skip the All-Star Game so he can get more rest, but it’s not as if he’ll exert a ton of effort in that game and then he’ll get a week off to rest and recover.

I’m not overly worried about Middleton, he’ll find his tough eventually but it has been a bit worrisome to be sure.

He has also turned the ball over a ton this season with the most turnovers per game (2.9) and basically the highest turnover rate (14.7 percent) of his career. The Bucks have needed more from Middleton as a ball-handler as both Jrue Holiday and George Hill have missed time this season and he’s seen his turnover rise because of it.

The Bucks need Middleton to clean up the turnovers (which will be helped by either a healthy Hill or a buyout addition like Goran Dragic) and find his touch from 3. I’m confident both will happen by the end of the season.