The Milwaukee Bucks have found a rhythm lately, ripping off six straight wins and quietly building momentum at the perfect time. But amid that surge, one trend is growing louder by the game: Kyle Kuzma is playing himself out of closing lineups.
Since the All-Star break, the Bucks are a -1.9 net rating with Kuzma on the floor, and a +13.8 when he's off it. That gap isn’t just noise; it’s the difference between a team bleeding points and a team dominating. And while Milwaukee's streak might mask the issue, it's getting harder to ignore that they’re winning despite Kuzma, not because of him.
In that span, Kyle Kuzma is only playing 5.3 fourth-quarter minutes per game. That's ninth on the team, and considering what he was supposed to bring this team when he was acquired at the trade deadline, it's simply unacceptable to have Ryan Rollins, Kevin Porter Jr. and AJ Green play more fourth-quarter minutes than someone the team received in exchange for a franchise legend in Khris Middleton.
Kyle Kuzma can be effective, but his late drop-offs are hard to ignore
Just to get it out of the way, the problem is not at all that Kuzma’s been outright terrible or anything like that. On the contrary, he’s still putting up double-digit points and can swing quarters with a hot stretch. But what’s become clear is that when the game tightens up, he’s often the first one pulled. Whether it’s for Gary Trent Jr.'s shotmaking or AJ Green's floor spacing, it's getting clearer by the day that Kuzma isn’t in Doc Rivers’ circle of trust right now.
Since Kuzma joined the Milwaukee Bucks, he's only put up 2.6 fourth-quarter points per game, even counting the opportunities he got earlier on in his Milwaukee tenure. He's done this shooting just 33.8 percent from the field.
As a result, the lineup stats show Milwaukee's most effective closing lineup as of late has been Antetokounmpo, Portis, Trent, Porter and Green.
Obviously, that’s a sharp contrast from the early days after his arrival from Washington, when his shot creation and ability to get buckets on his own were seen as exactly what the Bucks needed in their second unit. But as the Milwaukee Bucks have tightened their rotations, especially with Bobby Portis now having to ramp up, Kuzma’s defense and decision-making have become liabilities in crunch time.
This isn’t entirely surprising, of course. Kuzma has always been a rhythm player who thrives on usage and freedom. But that’s hard to guarantee when you’re playing next to Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo, who dominate the ball late in games. Without the ball, Kuzma becomes a shaky floor-spacer and a defensive target, which is why Rivers has gone away from him in high-leverage moments for the Milwaukee Bucks.
To be fair, he’s been used inconsistently, and it’s possible Rivers is still experimenting with rotations. But the minutes are saying what the stat sheet won’t: the Bucks are more stable when Kuzma sits. If he wants to shift that narrative before the playoffs, he’ll have to prove he can defend and contribute without hijacking the offense.
Because right now, the Milwaukee Bucks are rolling — and Kyle Kuzma is on the outside looking in.
Stay tuned for more Milwaukee Bucks analysis going forward.