Milwaukee Bucks links for your perusal on September 2nd, 2024
Want to see me make a wild rhetorical leap? Training for my upcoming marathon has provided me with greater clarity about the Milwaukee Bucks. In some sense, I am a Milwaukee Buck. Like them, my ultimate goal is to, “win when it counts,” but I certainly can’t do that if I don’t spend the months leading up to the final moment deliberately preparing myself.
I’m aware this is not a groundbreaking observation — in fact, on the surface it just looks like a way for me to elevate myself from shambling peasant to professional athlete through a weak thematic link. But what I’ve been thinking about more seriously this summer than I had during training for my two other marathons is how much the slow and boring miles matter. It is rare for a runner to skip them entirely, yet very common to ignore the “slow” instruction and do whatever you want because it is difficult to force yourself to focus in on the task directly at hand.
You ignore those slow miles at your own peril, though. Go too fast too often and you’ll add unnecessary fatigue on your muscles. All the possibility of fine-tuning your basic mechanics goes out the window. When you’ve reached race day and realize that you’ve got 26.2 extremely slow and boring miles ahead of you, the mental strain is that much greater if you aren’t ready for that grinding downshift. In short, the work of today is the only way to properly prepare for the end stage.
I think you can see where I’m going with this: Offseason training, preseason, film work, and, God help us, the regular season. Every ounce of concentrated effort the Milwaukee Bucks put in to each of those categories may very well be the difference. This is not a team that will physically bludgeon opponents into submission, so showing up on race day and flipping a switch is out the door. Instead, it will take something much harder to master: Craft, intelligence, togetherness. Every minute is a chance to hammer out a mechanic that never truly got off the ground last year (Giannis Antetokounmpo-Damian Lillard two man game, anyone?). Every possession a small piece of the puzzle that reveals what works once, what works repeatedly, and what doesn’t work at all. What was exciting about last season was the sense that we’d finally have a regular season worth tuning in for to watch the project unfold. Instead, we were faced with indifference bordering on hostility for 40 or so games followed by open mic night and deflating disappointment.
So I hope the Bucks learn the lesson of the slow miles yet again. There is no resting on laurels with this group and any notion that showing up next April in one piece will be enough would be naive in the extreme. Take your time, make each action count towards something, and reach the starting line as ready as you can be.
Let’s roundup!
Milwaukee Bucks Links
Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo marries longtime girlfriend in Greece (ClutchPoints)
Congratulations to the happy couple for tying the knot this past weekend! While I’m a little put out that my invite surely got lost in the mail, I’m also sure that LeBron served magnificently as a stand-in for me on the dance floor. Do we think they played the “Cha Cha Slide”? My heart says yes.
2024-25 Knicks Opponent: Milwaukee Bucks (Posting & Toasting)
Cool little series our colleagues at P&T are in the midst of leading up to the season where they recap each NBA matchup from last campaign and project it out into the coming year. I think Sam Stein is right to back New York for a 2-1 season series given the minutes Thibs runs his starters in and the general cohesion of Project Villanova 2.0.
NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Milwaukee Bucks (Hoops Rumors)
Good details in here and a thorough roundup of where the team is at (thanks Van for sending this my way). The machinations around the player options/extension eligibility for guys like Bobby Portis and Pat Connaughton are of special interest. Bobby is due for a pay raise and would likely expect as much for a team he has done a lot for; meanwhile, I’d be shocked if Pat doesn’t pick up that player option barring a miraculous resurgence this year. They’ve until next June to sign extensions.
Adidas and Damian Lillard Unveil Dame 9 Signature Shoe (Adidas)
The shoes really are uglier than sin. Unfortunately common Nike design department win.
Jrue Holiday Reveals Which NBA Championship Win Was Bigger For Him (Complex)
I don’t fault Jrue for answering that his title with the Celtics means more because he is currently employed by that team/he likely still holds a grudge for the way things went down in Milwaukee. However, to frame his argument as, “I grew up a Lakers fan so… it was special to adjust to winning a title for that team’s greatest rival” is a leap (to me). By comparison, I’m just a couch potato who can type so I’ll leave it be.
Robin Lopez on playing in Europe: “I absolutely consider it” (Eurohoops.net)
You know the competitive drive is real when someone like Robin — who has made a good chunk of change in his career and even got a pity/sweetner contract from the Bucks last year — hasn’t actually hung it up yet. Naturally, I look forward to watching him lift silverware with Serge Ibaka and/or Semi Ojeleye next year.
Theoretical Bucks Lineup of the Week
Taurean in the Middle
Damian Lillard / Gary Trent Jr. / Taurean Prince / Giannis Antetokounmpo / Brook Lopez
- Use Case: Khris Middleton is injured or has the night off, valuing defense for select possessions over offensive cohesion
- Strengths: Having two off-ball rangy defenders available to backfill, shooting, boosting Giannis and Dame’s usage rates, screen setting (???)
- Weaknesses: Rebounding/generic scrapping, shot creation, paint play
I’ve tried to avoid doing too many lineup variations that include most of the starting group and then swapping in a single player here or there because we have a wider site-wide exercise coming down the pike. However, while we wait for my colleagues’ full analysis, I’ve also been thinking of how and where Taurean Prince in particular will fit in.
The first key question to answer with him is who he replaces in any lineup. At 6’6” he’s a decent fit to take over Khris Middleton’s spot in the lineup whether due to rest or short-term tactical considerations. But does it make more sense to have Khris shift “down” to the two guard in place of Gary Trent Jr. and then put Prince in as the SF? In this variation I’m exploring the first option since it is more likely any given night if Khris has off, but there is every chance the latter use case is more important long-term.
I think the greatest risk with this group is just running out of offensive steam too quickly. Any grouping will put a lot on Dame and Giannis no matter what, but I’d be shocked if Brook isn’t even less involved as in years past, GTJ is best a spot-up guy, and Prince has range and who knows what else on-ball. Great news for those who want to spam P&R (me), I guess? If Brook and Taurean are going to hang out on the perimeter, it’ll be key that they can put in the work of setting a ton of screens to offset their smaller contributions on that end of the floor.
Defensively, I like the idea of Prince as primary wing defender who can also combine with Giannis to play a sort of dual free safety set while Lopez anchors the paint. In practice I think any lineup that has Prince-Giannis on the floor together will see a preference to keep Giannis on the weak side where the wear and tear is less and opportunity to read/react is more. Prince would be asked to do the heavy lifting on the strong side whether that be switching, isolation, or occasional zone. His key isn’t to be a stopper in his own right, but a guy who buys just enough time for his big backups to close the gap. Seems like a fascinating possibility to me.
The Social Media Section
I will not partake, but I’m also a 30 year old man who is not cut out for this fit (PS — AJJ’s bot farm a little more productive than MarJon’s? Interesting)
Should it be “Lillard U” or “The University of Damian Lillard”?
Who are “they” and why does Bobby perceive them to be sleeping on top of him?
It is okay to be a little afraid sometimes. Keeps you sharp.
Interesting tattoo design and selection from AJax
Apologies for getting this edition of the MMMR up a little late this morning! We’re just about to kick off our season preview series of podcast recordings this week, so keep an eye out for much more prediction from the entire Brew Hoop staff and the wider Bucks blogosphere!
Happy Monday!