Despite two pretty sizeable bumps in the road in the form of losses to the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers, the Milwaukee Bucks have looked solid post NBA All-Star break.
Milwaukee is 8-3 since returning to action, and a significant reason for their recent play has been the team finally starting to settle in around Doc Rivers and his coaching style. Several individual Bucks have found their stride under Rivers, particularly following the break, which has given this team a big jolt as they aim to showcase they are one of the league's best teams.
That said, let us now highlight three Bucks whose stock has risen following the break, as well as one whose has dropped.
Riser: Bobby Portis
There was plenty of trade talk surrounding Bobby Portis leading up to the 2024 NBA Trade Deadline, which made it surprising when the team ultimately decided to keep him. Many though that spelled out doom for the Milwaukee Bucks, given how poorly Portis had been playing to that point, but he's done a complete 180 after the NBA All-Star break.
Over his last 11 games since returning, Portis is averaging 15.4 points, the third most on the team in that span behind only Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, while shooting 52.6 percent from the floor and hauling in 7.7 rebounds per game. He's been playing inspired basketball in this stretch, giving Milwaukee a much-needed spark off of the bench with his energy, rebounding and scoring.
This is the Bobby Portis fans have been waiting to see. While he's still looking for that perimeter shot, shooting 34.4 percent after the break, he's done just about everything else as well as one would like. Of course, the big test will be doing it down the stretch and into the playoffs, but for now, it would be hard not to recognize how well the big man has performed.
Riser - Pat Connaughton
A lot of what was said about Bobby Portis can be said about Pat Connaughton. For much of the year, the veteran two guard had been struggling mightily, and plenty of the fans wanted to see him moved or taken out of Milwaukee's rotation. Yet, after the NBA All-Star break, Connaughton has been much better than his early-season self.
Over these 11 contests, Connaughton has averaged 7.9 points, three rebounds and 1.7 assists while sinking 46 percent of his field goals and 35.6 percent of his shots from long range. He has looked like the Connaughton of old, hitting shots both from the outside and right at the rim, hauling in rebounds and even showing off his playmaking chops, as he did in a recent win over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Like Portis, being able to let out a sigh of relief after the deadline passed knowing that he will stay in Milwaukee may have helped up Connaughton's performance. Doc Rivers said that he spoke with the veteran guard during the All-Star break about things, and whatever it was, it has seemingly helped Connaughton out mightily.
He's not quite at 2021 Pat Connaughton status yet, but there's no denying that he has improved his individual stock since returning to action. If he can keep it up, he may end up being one of the most important players on the roster in big situations.
Riser - AJ Green
Upon taking over as head coach, Doc Rivers said that one of Milwaukee's players would have to help the team. Understandably, many minds went to Andre Jackson Jr. or MarJon Beauchamp due to their athleticism, transition play and defensive potential. Yet, in an interesting twist, Rivers instead called upon AJ Green, the second-year, undrafted wing from Northern Iowa.
On paper, Green's stats over his last eight appearances following the All-Star break might not leap off the page. He's putting up 5.4 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.8 assists while shooting 41.2 percent from the floor and 37 percent from the perimeter in 13.9 minutes per game. Yet, Green's impact in this run has gone beyond just the stat sheet.
His greatest attribute is his perimeter shot, but Green has also shown lately that he can play defense. At 6-foot-4, 200lbs, Green has a build that allows him to stick with guards of all shapes and sizes on that side of things. He's not an elite defender, but for a player whose biggest question mark coming into the league was defense, he's taken a big step forward.
The greatest example of what Green can bring came in Milwaukee's win over the 76ers in their most recent meeting. In 28 minutes, a career-high, Green scored 14 points on 4-of-8 shooting, but he also played some excellent defense on Philadelphia's Tyrese Maxey, who had been cooking the Bucks for most of the matchup. He didn't shut him down, but he made things as tough as possible.
With Khris Middleton returning to the fold, it's unclear what kind of role Green will play for the Bucks down the stretch, but there is no doubt that he has raised his stock higher.
Faller - Danilo Gallinari
When the Milwaukee Bucks picked up Danilo Gallinari off the buyout market, no one expected him to come in skyrocket the team's title chances on impact. The hope was that Gallinari could be a backup big man capable of occasionally giving the team a spark off of the bench with his scoring and outside shooting ability. Unfortunately, that just has not panned out to this point.
In 11 games with the Bucks, the vet has averaged 2.2 points while shooting 7-of-22 (31.8 percent) from the field and a putrid 1-of-11 (9.1 percent) from long distance. Playing 8.5 minutes per game, Gallinari hasn't played the largest role for Milwaukee, but he's gotten some extended time with key cogs such as Khris Middleton sidelined. Still, he hasn't taken advantage.
With Khris Middleton set to return to the lineup on Sunday, Gallinari's role may be reduced to being Milwaukee's break glass in case of an emergency big man. Ultimately, that is fine, since it's what they picked him up to do in the first place, but there was at least hope that he could provide a spark when thrown into the lineup.
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