Since coming over in an NBA Trade Deadline deal, Kyle Kuzma has completely bought into his role with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Rather than being among the top options who fire away at will like he was on the Washington Wizards, Kuzma understands that the Bucks need him to be more of a complementary piece. He's played this role before with the Los Angeles Lakers, helping them win a title in 2020, and in the early going with the Milwaukee Bucks, he's embraced that same challenge.
However, during his first few games with the Bucks, Kuzma had not yet played alongside franchise cornerstone Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was injured. Given that he's the engine that makes this team go nightly, the most important factor that would determine Kuzma's success was how well he would fit in with the Greek Freak.
In their first action together against the LA Clippers, the fit looked seamless.
Kyle Kuzma was vital in helping the Bucks storm back against LA
One of the reasons the Milwaukee Bucks traded for Kyle Kuzma was his versatility and ability to guard players of all shapes and sizes.
His defensive prowess was on full display in this one, rotating between just about everyone on the LA side in terms of his matchup. In total, Clippers players shot a mere 4-of-16 (25 percent) with Kuzma as the main defender. That included Kawhi Leonard going 0-of-4, Bogdan Bogdanovic going 0-of-3 and James Harden going 1-of-3. No matter who he was guarding, Kuzma made things challenging as he hounded them.
Offensively, it wasn't Kuzma's finest performance, as he shot just 4-of-10 for 13 points, but there were glimpses of potential sprinkled throughout.
As mentioned, Kuzma's outside shooting will be crucial in helping him fit in with the Bucks, and he started the game off with a triple off a pass from Giannis. Minutes later, he hit one off a look from Damian Lillard. Later, with the Milwaukee Bucks out in transition, Kuzma found himself ahead of the pack and secured an and-one finish over James Harden. Having another floor spacer and transition threat is exactly what this team needed.
To top things off, Kuzma also hauled in seven rebounds. That's an aspect of his game that will be vital to the Milwaukee Bucks' success with Bobby Portis suspended for the next handful of games. There needs to be someone outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo who is active on the glass, and Kuzma has both the height and length to do so, as shown against the Clippers.
Kuzma's do-it-all play helped the Milwaukee Bucks storm back and secure a 116-110 victory over the Clippers to come back from the NBA All-Star break on a high note.
It wasn't a perfect performance from Kyle Kuzma, as he missed a few shots and tallied four turnovers. However, there's no denying that the good outweighed the bad. His defense was excellent, and he put plenty of positives on display offensively. As he continues finding his groove with the team, he should only get better and better.
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