The Milwaukee Bucks had been begging for a good game from the bench unit. Monday night versus the Trail Blazers, they finally got it, led by 22 points from Bobby Portis and 16 from Cole Anthony. Alas, their performances went by the wayside as the starters went ghost mode. The way things are going right now, this team cannot catch a break.
Starters dropped the ball after bench gave them golden opportunity
On top of the others' contributions, Gary Trent Jr. added 12 points of his own and a rare positive plus-minus in the box score. Anthony had his first game in double figures or shooting above 50 percent (8-for-12) in ten days. Portis scored his most points of the season. The reserves' effort would have been enough to get back in the win column if the starters simply did their part.
The problem was that Kyle Kuzma was the only one who showed up. No one else in the starting lineup made more than one-third of his shots. Everyone but Kuzma posted a plus-minus of -12 or worse.
It was at once frustrating to watch and all too familiar. Myles Turner again underwhelmed as a scorer. AJ Green only attempted six shots. Trail Blazers defenders keyed in on Rollins. The Jericho Sims experiment went out the window quickly.
Portis, Anthony, and Trent nearly outscored the starters by themselves. Altogether, the Bucks outscored the Trail Blazers' bench 59-28. The second unit accounted for 14 of Milwaukee's 22 assists. It was perhaps the team's best bench performance of the season, all for nought.
It's worth noting, of course, that Portis' return to a reserve role swapped out a source of recent starting lineup production. On the floor for tip-off against both the Pistons and 76ers, he gave the Bucks 18 and 19 points in their last two games. His replacement in the starting five versus Portland, Sims, gave them nothing.
Still, Portis is more naturally a sixth or seventh man, and the Bucks have rarely gotten such a bench-wide boost. He has been better of late but has had his own struggles. Positive nights from Anthony have been hard to come by. Trent played well. Gary Harris found a way to contribute despite going scoreless (good defense, four assists, two steals).
Because the starters weren't able to hold up their end of the bargain, it feels like they let one slip away. A chance to steal a W and stop the bleeding goes into the win-loss column as a fifth straight L. The Bucks can only hope for another night of strong bench play on Wednesday in Miami. Until Giannis returns and perhaps even after, they're going to need all hands on deck.