3 Studs, 3 duds from Bucks' tough yet potential-filled preseason loss to Lakers
By Dalton Sell
After a tough road defeat against the Detroit Pistons to kick off the preseason, the Milwaukee Bucks returned home to welcome in the Los Angeles Lakers.
It was an interesting game, to say the least. Giannis Antetokounmpo making his preseason debut was certainly a shot in the arm for the Bucks, though they were without Khris Middleton and Delon Wright. Yet, Milwaukee put together a strong first half with most of their primary rotation players, possessing a 58-52 lead at the break.
Having seen enough, Doc Rivers pulled his regulars and let the players looking to carve out a role for themselves take over in half two. While the young Bucks managed to hold a 15-point lead in the final quarter, the Lakers went on a late surge and erased that in the blink of an eye. They went on to take a 107-102 victory back to LA, gifting the Milwaukee Bucks a 0-2 record in the preseason thus far.
Despite the loss, there were plenty of eye-catching individual performances in this one, and let's now break them down by analyzing studs and duds.
Stud - AJ Johnson
With Delon Wright, Milwaukee's backup point guard, out for the game, rookie AJ Johnson got some extra burn in this one, and he didn't disappoint. In 22 minutes, the 19-year-old showed his potential, attacking the hoop with confidence while teeing off from deep. Furthermore, he flexed his prowess as a faciliatory and rebounder, having an all-around impact on this one.
In total, Johnson finished with 13 points, four rebounds and three assists. It wasn't a perfect outing, as Johnson shot just 41.7 percent and had two turnovers and two fouls, but there's no question the youngster was one of the bright spots from this contest. It's early, but Johnson is proving he may be more NBA-ready than some initially thought.
Dud - Andre Jackson Jr.
A lot of Bucks fans predicted Andre Jackson Jr. would break out for the team this year. He still could, but between Summer League and the preseason, he truly hasn't shown much. In just eight and a half minutes, Jackson made one of his five shot attempts, all from inside the arc. He didn't appear to have the same confidence attacking the hoop from a season ago, even missing a dunk.
Elsewhere, Jackson stuffed the stat sheet with ones, tallying one rebound, one assist, one steal, one turnover and one personal foul. If the wing will truly leap into the rotation like Bucks fans had thought, the sophomore simply needs to shake this slump he's been in. Jackson has all of the physical tools to be an NBA player, and he still has time to turn things around, but this was another subpar showing.