With Giannis Antetokounmpo set to miss potentially the next month and a half and Kevin Porter Jr. out with no timetable to return, the Milwaukee Bucks just became Ryan Rollins' team. As the team's playoff hopes hang by a thread, it will be up to Rollins to step up as the go-to option for the time being. It's a lot to ask of the youngster, but the Bucks don't have a choice.
Just like he did early in the season, Rollins can prove to the rest of the NBA world that he's one of the rising guards in the league and that his early success wasn't a fluke.
Ryan Rollins will be thrown into the fire as the Bucks' first option
This won't be uncharted territory for Ryan Rollins. Antetokounmpo and Porter have both already been banged up at various points this season, leading to more opportunities for him. The only reason he is a starter at the moment is that Porter went down in the first few minutes of the season opener. In extended minutes, he's proven he can be a big-time player.
Playing over double the minutes per game he averaged last year, Rollins is putting together the best year of his young career. In 44 matchups, he's tallied 16.1 points, 5.4 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game while hitting 39.2 percent of his triples. This is all while playing an ever-changing role under Doc Rivers. He's been one of the lone bright spots in an otherwise disastrous season.
Although a recent slump has seen his odds dip, Rollins is still in the mix for this year's Most Improved Player Award. With an increased workload and free range to operate as he pleases, the guard can still dig himself out of this current hole. It starts with Rollins, who has shot above 45 percent in every month this season, busting out of a 40.3 percent shooting slump in the month of January.
This could be great for Rollins' development. At times, he's played like a legitimate No. 2 option next to Giannis Antetokounmpo. At 23 years old, he's still young, so the best thing for him right now is as many touches and game reps as he can get. As long as Doc Rivers gives him the reins, he's going to earn plenty of them over the next several weeks.
Rollins just earned the opportunity of a lifetime, and his growth in this stretch could be one of the team's few upcoming silver linings.
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