3 Possible Milwaukee Bucks’ lineup options for the 2023-2024 NBA season
Milwaukee Bucks’ starting lineup option 2: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez, Malik Beasley
The Milwaukee Bucks lucked out in a way by getting Malik Beasley, especially with what he was going to make had the Lakers decided to keep him. After they declined his $16.5 million team option, Milwaukee picked him up on a one-year deal worth $2.8 million, which is a huge steal.
Beasley comes to Milwaukee with a lot to prove, especially after his role on the Lakers began to dwindle as the playoffs wore on, as he didn’t play in three of the four games against the Denver Nuggets. With a mindset of wanting to prove something early in the year, there is no question Beasley is going to come out hungry to start the season and will take full advantage of any opportunities he earns in the starting lineup.
When he’s been given those opportunities in his career, he’s taken full advantage with his offensive scoring ability. In the 2020-2021 season with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Beasley was putting up career numbers, playing in 37 games and starting 36 while averaging 19.6 points per game on 44 percent shooting from the floor. He had 11 games of scoring 25 points or more during that same season, which shows he’s not only a consistent scorer but can get into the 20s on a regular basis.
Having a scoring option on the wing with that potential is something Milwaukee would gladly welcome, especially when it could take some of the pressure off of Middleton and the other wings.
In the past, Giannis Antetokounmpo has benefitted from having Middleton and Holiday both help with scoring, in addition to Lopez being a consistent scorer as well. But they’ve suffered from inconsistent play at times from other wing players like Grayson Allen and Pat Connaughton. Having Beasley there as a regular threat would force the defense to have a to pay attention to him and would give Middleton more open looks with a preoccupied defense.
Beasley can be inconsistent, which was evident when he failed to score in double figures in six of the final 11 regular season games, including a scoreless outing against Chicago. Even with his potential inconsistencies, having Beasley in the starting lineup at least gives the Milwaukee Bucks another 20-point threat on the wing that could also help his fellow starting mates with their own open looks and scoring.