Takeaways from the Milwaukee Bucks final two Summer League games

Takeaways from the Milwaukee Bucks final two Summer League games: The Bucks can’t solve the Raptors

There is something about the Raptors that give the Bucks all sorts of problems. Obviously, the summer league teams are different than the NBA teams, but there is often systemic crossover, as well as player type crossover. The Bucks just looked absolutely overwhelmed by the Raptors’ combination of length and athleticism.

Ever since Nick Nurse took over the head coaching job, the organization has placed a premium on guys who can guard up and down the lineup and sprint around the court, disrupting passing lanes and rotating onto shooters who would normally find themselves with an open shot. Zooming in a little, a big issue the Bucks had this summer was their complete lack of dribbling ability. The Raptors did a great job of crowding the Bucks’ guards already shaky handles, taking time off the shot clock and disrupting their rhythm.

The Raptors summer league team (as is the case with their NBA team post-Kawhi Leonard) was not built for scoring in the half court, but rather relishing in completely locking down opponents and running with the ball off of misses and turnovers. The Bucks just did not have the juice to keep up with them, and their wildly low point total on the night evidenced that.

This was always going to be a game the Bucks struggled with, so it is not worth taking too much away from it. However, it remains frustrating that they cannot seem to ever hit the right notes against the Raptors because of the gap in athleticism between the two squads. Hopefully, the drafting of Marjon Beauchamp is the start of General Manager Jon Horst’s recognition of the importance of athleticism in today’s game.

All three players mentioned to watch in summer league brought something to the table, next to keep an eye on with them is the start of training camp.