3 takeaways from Milwaukee Bucks’ gruesome loss to Charlotte Hornets
By Dalton Sell
After a nail-biting overtime win against the Toronto Raptors, the Milwaukee Bucks returned home to face the Charlotte Hornets.
The Bucks let their guard down and nearly faced what would have been a devastating collapse vs. the Raptors, so one might have thought they would come out with some fire against the Hornets. Unfortunately, that did not happen. The Hornets, who ranked dead last in first quarter points per game entering last night’s matchup, per NBA.com/stats, scored a whopping 51 points in the first 12 minutes. That tied an NBA record, and the Hornets never let up from there. Following a grueling 48 minutes of one-sided basketball, the Hornets barely broke a sweat as they walked away with a commanding 138-109 win over the Bucks.
Last night’s matchup was certainly one of the team’s low points this season. Aside from the hole at the small forward spot due to Khris Middleton’s absence, the team was healthy, and they were run off the floor in their own building. Some discussions will need to be had about the loss, as the Bucks need to learn from some sizeable mistakes they made throughout the game. With that said, here are three takeaways from a gruesome game between the Bucks and Hornets.
A.J. Green proved to be one of the lone bright spots in the Milwaukee Bucks’ loss to the Charlotte Hornets
In a game the Milwaukee Bucks lost by 29 points, it would typically be difficult to find some kind of a positive in the aftermath. However, if there was one sliver of a silver lining from last night, it was the solid play of rookie two-way guard A.J. Green.
Green checked into the game in the second quarter and immediately gave the Bucks a boost after falling into a deep deficit. The rookie tallied eight points, tied for the most on the Bucks during the second quarter, while shooting 3-of-4 from the floor and 2-of-3 from deep throughout his six and a half minutes play. Green would finish with 13 points, the second most on the team in the contest behind Bobby Portis and a new career-high, on 5-for-8 field goal shooting, including 3-for-6 on his long range attempts.
With the Bucks battling through some injuries lately, Green has been asked to step up and has not shied away from it. The rookie is quickly proving to be one of the better long-distance shooters on Milwaukee’s roster. Given that 3-point shooting continues to be a massive issue for the Bucks, the 23-year-old could continue to get his share of playing time, especially with some of Milwaukee’s key pieces going in and out of the lineup.
It’s hard to envision a rookie, especially one on a two-way, becoming a steady piece in the rotation, but if Green keeps shooting it like this, the coaching staff may not have a choice.