3 reasons why the Bucks should reignite their interest in Dillon Brooks
By Corey Moen
1- His defensive acumen
Milwaukee lost to the Miami Heat in five games because they couldn’t find a defender to stay in front of Jimmy Butler.
Middleton never looked like the same guy, particularly on the defensive end, since coming back from his knee injury. Matthews was fine, but he won’t be your starting shooting guard next season. Crowder and Ingles couldn’t keep up with Butler; Brooks would immediately solve all of their problems.
Brooks isn’t the most offensively efficient player, but neither was P.J. Tucker. That kind of player is what Milwaukee has been the past two seasons; they need a guy who is a little taller and will guard the other team’s best wing player.
Jrue Holiday is an elite defender, but it shouldn’t have been up to him to stop Jimmy Butler one-on-one because Butler is a taller player at 6-foot-8; Holiday is 6-foot-5. Milwaukee didn’t have that guy who is out there for the sole purpose of stopping the best player.
Per NBA.com/stats, Memphis had the third-best defensive rating in the league during the regular season, and that was with defensive anchors Brandon Clarke and Steven Adams missing time. Milwaukee ranked third, and if they secured Brooks from Memphis, they wouldn’t miss a beat defensively.
Signing Dillon Brooks would be a good regular-season signing, but it would be more important for the playoffs, as Milwaukee needs to find another guy outside of Jrue Holiday who can bring that defensive versatility. Brooks would fill that need and more for Milwaukee.