You win some, you lose some. The Milwaukee Bucks losing to New York, Washington, Memphis, and Toronto has to have a “silver lining,” right?
Thankfully, for fans of the Milwaukee Bucks over the past twenty years, your record is 803-802. So, Bucks fans have seen more wins than losses by one (This might surprise you, but over the past twenty years, the Minnesota Timberwolves have the worst record in the NBA at 630-946). Being a part of something that is “just good” is, well, “just good."
Losing to Washington, Memphis, Toronto, and New York certainly was not in the cards. But this team and its fanbase have certainly learned a few things from these losses.
Let’s take a deeper dive and see what we have learned. These ticky-tacky losses should not be in vain.
Milwaukee needs to do better at creating defensive pressure
Last season, this headline easily could have read, “Milwaukee Needs to Watch Their Turnovers.” But under Doc Rivers, this team does not turn over the ball much. No, instead, this team just doesn’t make the other team turn the ball over much.
Where is the defensive pressure and intensity?
Lately, they have been slipping when it comes to winning the turnover battle, especially when it comes to exerting defensive pressure to cause turnovers. In this most recent loss to the Knicks, Milwaukee had 14 turnovers. New York only had five. Against Memphis, they only had 11 turnovers (good), but they only caused eight. So, they lost the turnover battle in both of those.
Against Washington, in a loss, the team had 12 turnovers. However, they only caused 10. Another turnover battle loss. Against New Orleans, in a loss, the team had 14 turnovers. Against LA, in a loss, the team also had 17 turnovers, only causing 14.
What it seems to come down to is if Milwaukee can do a better job of protecting the ball and win the “turnover battle” then they can win. Also, to only cause five turnovers against a team like the Knicks is just simply never going to cut it.
And not to compare basketball to football, but in the NFL, the team that turns the ball over less almost always wins.
The Bucks need to generate more turnovers than they have to win more games. In a “signature win” (112-95) against the defending champion Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee had 12 team turnovers. In that win, Denver had 13 team turnovers, a turnover battle “win” for the Bucks.
The Bucks “Live and Die” by the three more than we give them credit for
Under former head coach Mike Budenholzer, it was clear what the strategy was to shoot the three and rebound.
Giannis Antetokounmpo would drive, kick it out to an open shooter, and “bombs away!” In the 2021-2022 NBA season, the Bucks were fifth in the NBA in 3-point attempts. The following season, they were fourth. This season, their attempts are down by about four fewer threes per game. Under Bud, this team lived and died by the three.
That has not changed much and it was evident in these three losses to these losing teams.
In that previously mentioned “signature win” against Denver, Milwaukee shot 50 percent from three.
In a recent loss to Memphis, Milwaukee shot 40 percent from three, which is still not all that bad. In a loss to New York, Milwaukee only shot 35 percent from three.
In an embarrassing home loss to Washington, Milwaukee only shot 22 percent from three. Yuck!
The Milwaukee Bucks “live and die” by the three. If they shoot the three poorly in the upcoming playoffs, that does not bode well for a championship run.
The only “silver-lining” in this “silver-lining” (is that possible? I guess) is that most NBA teams today are structured that way, including Boston and OKC.
The Milwaukee Bucks need to play "quicker"
This one is hard to quantify. But in these four losses, this Milwaukee Bucks team has just looked slow.
In terms of team speed, it is not about passing or assist numbers. In the most recent loss to the Knicks, the Bucks actually had more team assists than New York, 27-25. Another traditional metric, "fast-break points," also does not help here.
No, what Milwaukee needs is more urgency on offense in setting picks. They also need more urgency, again, on defense, to create that defensive pressure. Unlike in years past, they just have not had the personnel to hound opponents on the defensive end on a consistent basis. With one of the oldest rosters the league has to offer, a lot of players struggle to keep up with younger players.
Maybe the right statistical metric we are looking for here is team steals. In the loss to the Knicks, Milwaukee only managed three steals (New York had nine). In the loss to Toronto, Milwaukee managed eight steals to Toronto's nine. In the loss to Memphis, it was all tied at five.
On the court, Milwaukee needs to play faster. They also need to work on this next HUGE lesson: stop taking teams for granted.
The Biggest Lesson: They are all professional, and they are trying to win, too!
This lesson is going to be huge for the Milwaukee Bucks' upcoming NBA playoff run.
The Bucks can not take anyone for granted. Yes, they lost to Toronto, Washington, New York, and Memphis, but they get paid, too. This Milwaukee Bucks team is not going to be able to walk into a playoff series and “out star” anyone. Professional athletes are out to make a name for themselves. Can this Bucks team be a group that makes a name for themselves to end this 2023-2024 NBA regular season and beyond?
For Milwaukee fans, and for the franchise itself, it is this hope that propels this team forward.
With only five games remaining in the regular season, what matters now is getting ready for the playoffs. If Milwaukee can make it to the second round, well, then that has to be considered a success since they lost in the first round last year.
Of course, for fans of this Milwaukee Bucks team, they expect more.
Focusing on creating defensive pressure, shooting well from three, playing faster, and not taking anyone for granted are four valuable lessons from these four terrible losses. Let’s see if Milwaukee can end this season with some positive momentum.