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

How will the Milwaukee Bucks rotation evolve down the stretch?

There are a ton of variables here. It starts with Lopez and his return.

If he’s back and ready to go, that would send Bobby Portis back to the bench and give the Bucks some scoring punch in the second unit, which they’ve lacked this season. That already makes them deeper.

George Hill missed the final nine games going into the break with neck soreness and there hasn’t been much of an update in regards to his status. That has left the Bucks very thin for backup guards and secondary ball-handling in the second unit.

A popular solution to this has been adding Dragic to alleviate some of those issues. A recent report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski suggests that they have been very active in pursuing him, offering him the chance for real playing time right away.

However, as he’s the only real big name on the market, he has a bunch of suitors that are also contending. There’s no guarantee they’ll be able to add Dragic, so that will be a concern if Hill remains out long-term.

Then there’s the whole mess on the wing with Grayson Allen (who missed the final game before the break but should be back for their next game), Pat Connaughton (who is out for a month after surgery on his broken finger), DeAndre’ Bembry (who hasn’t even played a game), Wesley Matthews (who has seemingly forgotten how to shoot), and Jordan Nwora (who has been up-and-down all season).

Allen and Connaughton are locked in, providing they’re healthy, to be regular rotation players down the stretch and in the playoffs. After that, there’s a bunch of question marks.

If Bembry plays well in the final 22 games and his hot shooting continues over from what he did with Brooklyn, I wouldn’t be surprised if he earns a place in the rotation to help unlock the Giannis-at-center lineups as a small-ball four to increase their switchability.

Matthews could easily secure a rotation spot, but his shooting has fallen off a cliff at 18.4 percent in the last 14 games heading into the break.

Both players bring a lot defensively, but being a good floor spacer and making the defense have to guard you beyond the 3-point line is crucial in the playoffs and especially so with Antetokounmpo.

The Bucks have lots of options for who they can play down the stretch and into the playoffs, so this final 22-game audition period will be huge for those guys (and whoever comes in from the buyout market/free agency).