First of all, wipe the final score of last night’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers out of your mind. Do it. There’s no need to think about it. Sure, it was an ugly loss for the Milwaukee Bucks, but no one was playing for either team.
Instead, focus on the overwhelming positives! Bobby Portis scored a bunch of points! Jordan Nwora efficiently scored a bunch of points! And, most interestingly, Jevon Carter continued to shoot the cover off the ball!
Breaking down Jevon Carter’s big night for the Milwaukee Bucks
Carter had 18 points on percent true shooting and eight assists against the Clippers last night after seeing only 24 seconds of total playing time in the previous two games against two very good teams.
His lack of playing time was something that befuddled fans considering how well he’d played before that. In addition to his calling card, 94-feet of defense, Carter was shooting nearly 59 percent from 3 on over two attempts since joining the Bucks.
That shooting in combination with his defense had many wondering if he had won the backup point guard job over George Hill. Apparently, head coach Mike Budenholzer wasn’t convinced!
I’ve been open that Carter’s shooting surge has been a very pleasant surprise for me (someone who was a big fan of his already) and that adding him for nothing — and taking him from another Eastern Conference rival — was a big boost for the Bucks’ fortunes.
All of that being said, I was still in support of Hill as the backup point guard, especially as the Bucks played better teams down the stretch and as they head into the playoffs.
Hill has struggled with his offense, specifically his shooting, this season at just over 31 percent from 3 on 2.6 attempts. He’s still been effective scoring at the rim (over 74 percent, which is pretty nuts) but the shooting struggles supersedes that.
If Hill can’t make the defense pay for sagging off of him to help on Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, etc. then it’ll be hard for him to stay on the floor, regardless of what else he brings. At the very least, he’ll need to drive against a scrambled defense and get more shots at the rim or make a kick-out pass.
The last two games before the Clippers disaster were what I figured Budenholzer’s playoff rotation would more or less look like, depending on matchups and such. It did not feature Carter (aside from those 24 seconds).
You simply have to find a way to get Carter in there at this point. Whether that’s at the expense of Hill or you move some minutes around to get both in the rotation to some degree, he needs to be in there for the playoffs.
At least until his shooting cools off. I keep saying that you can’t expect him to shoot as well as he has from 3, but then he goes out there and nails both of his 3-point attempts after essentially a two-game layoff.
There is value, though, in having a veteran that you trust, you know what you’re going to get, and you consistently win his minutes.
There’s also value in having a guy who picks up opposing ball-handlers full court and knocks down catch-and-shoot jumpers at around a 60 percent clip.
I’m just thankful that I’m not the one who has to make these decisions for the Milwaukee Bucks (nor am I qualified to be).