Games	Starts	Minutes	Points	Field Goal %	Rebounds	Rebound %	3PT %	PER
Darnell Jackson	1	0	8	2.0	0.200	2.0	14.2	0	-7.0
Hakim Warrick	48	6	21.3	10.2	0.481	4.4	11.8	0.167	15.6
Luc Richard Mbah a Moute	73	62	25.6	6.2	0.480	5.5	12.2	0.353	11.8
Carlos Delfino	75	66	30.4	11.0	0.408	5.3	9.8	0.367	12.9
Ersan Ilyasova	81	31	23.4	10.4	0.443	6.4	15.5	0.336	15.7

Darnell Jackson

A D-League terror,
Minutes in a useless game.
May have a future

A late season waiver wire acquisition, the Bucks thought enough of Jackson to claim him even though he could not be on the playoff roster. This was before Andrew Bogut’s injury, but they could have used another end of the rotation big for the playoffs even then. This indicated at the time that the Bucks would likely be interested in seeing if he could contribute going forward and reports that he’ll be in Vegas with the Bucks summer league team would confirm that suspicion. In two D-League games this season, he averaged 33 points and 11.5 rebounds, so there must be at least SOMETHING to Jackson’s game. Brandon Jennings also Tweeted about his dance moves, which is fun to hear about.

Hakim Warrick

Thundering dunker,
Positionless defender.
His hands, they betray.

It seems like ages ago that Warrick was being talked about as the possible steal of the off-season. After a strong pre-season, Warrick only showed flashes of productivity. He’s a man without a position. Too small to body up to big power forwards, but too slow to hang with threes. There was some hopeful talk last summer about Warrick spending time at the three, but his shaky ball-handling and unreliable jump shot quelled those hopes quickly. Warrick was a prolific dunker and probably has a role in a third of the Bucks highlights this season, but he just couldn’t hold up enough on defense to get much of a role. Before being shipped to Chicago, he was shipped to the end of the bench.

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute

A stout defender.
Jumper a work in progress,
His future still bright.

The body of a three and the game of a four. Mbah a Moute’s an important part of the Bucks going forward, but in a weird way. If he’s starting at the four, that severely limits Milwaukee’s options offensively. If he’s starting at the three it does the same. But he’s the Bucks best defender not named Andrew Bogut and probably could make an All-Defensive team as early as next season. That’s why it is so crucial Mbah a Moute develop a spot up jumper at minimum. He worked all off-season last year on it and actually shot 8% worse from 16-23 feet this season. He’s likely looking at a bench role where he’s coming in to match up with the other team’s scoring threats at certain times in the game. If he can knock down jump shots with some consistency next season though, that only helps his cause. Milwaukee may be able to get by with him playing some three, assuming they have a good ball handler at the two and capable offensive threat at the four.

Ersan Ilyasova

Shoots threes, pounds the glass;
On occasion, flings too much.
His ceiling is high.

Despite being labeled by some a “chucker”, Ilyasova had a terrific first season back for Milwaukee. He was one of Milwaukee’s most consistent rebounders and showed flashes of being able to do so much more. After a strong start to the season, his three-point shooting numbers tailed off badly in March and April, perhaps due to some tiredness. Unfortunately, this off-season doesn’t include much rest of Ilyasova, as he’ll play for Turkey in the World Championships. Coach Skiles has said he thinks Ilyasova will round into a 37 or 38 percent three-point shooter, in addition to improving taking the ball to the hoop. As a post up player, Ilyasova offers little, but his work ethic is good and his effort is always high. It’s tough to put a ceiling on Ilyasova, but at the same time, I don’t want to declare him the next Dirk Nowitzki. He’s good and he’ll get better, but it’s tough to tell where he levels off at this point. My favorite thing about Ersan Ilyasova is that he’ll be making less money than Charlie Bell in each of the next two seasons. Talk about value.

Carlos Delfino

Inconsistency
Was what defined his season.
Can he take a step?

A role player cast in a role too prominent for his own good, Delfino went through peaks and valleys all season. Delfino could probably do the Bucks much better in a sixth or seventh man role, maybe the role that Jerry Stackhouse occupied this season. He’s a good fit in Milwaukee, his defense is above average and he’s versatile. The problem with Delfino is it’s difficult to tell when he’ll show up. He had multiple months in which he shot under 40%, but then strung together a January where he hit nearly 50% of his shots and averaged 13 and 6. He’s not quite a good enough three-point shooter where he can be a designated shooter, but his other tools make up for that. His contract is only guaranteed for $500,000 next season, but becomes fully guaranteed at $3.5 million if he’s not waived or traded by June 30th. My prediction is that he’ll either be part of a package before the draft or be back next season. Whether he’s a starter or a reserve next year will go a ways towards deciding how much of an improvement the Bucks will make next season.

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From ESPN TrueHoop:

The Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks were nearing completion of the John Salmons trade Thursday morning. However, although the early word last night was that the Bucks would send Kurt Thomas and Francisco Elson to the Bulls, sources close to the process told ESPN.com this morning that there is a “90 percent chance” Milwaukee sends Chicago Joe Alexander and Hakim Warrick instead.

JSOnline is reporting it is indeed Warrick and Alexander.

The financial implications are as such:  The combined salaries of Warrick and Alexander ($5,583,360) leave the Bucks on the hook for just $253,646 additional dollars in salary this year, as Salmons contracted called for $6,421,151 (Salmons’ deal – combined money going out, divided by the remaining games left is the math there).

Salmons will have one year left on his contract after this season at 5,808,000, while the now former Bucks Warrick and Alexander are expiring contracts.

***All salary information from ShamSports.com

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Many.

Rumors.

I know no one can get enough, so I thought I’d try and keep updating this post to do my best to keep everything together for the next day or so.

• That rumor about Kurt Thomas to the Hawks?  Just a rumor according to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution.  I was suspicious of it right away, as Mo Evans didn’t seem an uber-logical fit with the Bucks.  And that was before the AJC alerted me that he has a $2.5 million player option next year.

• Yahoo! Sports notes that the Bucks have had some interest in Al Harrington.  This was reported at 3 AM CST, and that sounds like the kind of thing a GM would think only at 3 AM.

• Chris Broussard reports that the Nuggets contacted Milwaukee about Hakim Warrick and (here’s a shocker … but not really) Kurt Thomas, but talks didn’t go far after the Nuggets revealed that they have nothing to offer for anyone.

• Chad Ford wrote that the Bucks have interest in Chicago’s Tyrus Thomas and may be interested in a shooting guard as well.  John Salmons is on the hook for 5,808,000 next season while Thomas is a restricted free agent with a $6,256,806 qualifying offer.  Those two could be successfully traded for any of the packages the Bucks have looked at with regard to Troy Murphy.

UPDATE

• Drew Gooden? Gooden will reportedly be bought out by the Clippers after his arrival from Washington, freeing him up to pursue other options.  His number one (or one A) option supposedly is the Bucks.  Milwaukee may present an intriguing option for Gooden in the same way it did for Warrick this past off-season: more playing time and more points than others can provide.

• Salmons to the Bucks for Thomas and Francisco Elson?  It’s floating around, though Thomas is playing in Wednesday’s game.  If that deal went through it would open a roster spot for Drew Gooden.

UPDATE

• Mike Dunleavy (Clippers GM not Pacers SG) told the Los Angeles Daily News it is not the Clippers intention to buyout Gooden.  Thus, if the Bucks wanted Gooden they’d have to make a deal with the Clippers, which seems unlikely given the time constraints.

It’s worth noting what teams do NOT have a first round pick in this June’s draft:

L.A. Lakers
Denver Nuggets
Dallas Mavericks
Phoenix Suns
Toronto Raptors (unless it’s in the lottery)
Charlotte Bobcats (unless it’s in the lottery)
New York Knicks

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That’s where I come in.

I’ve constructed a handy guide of the Bucks players most likely to be on the move.  I’ll fill you in on where they could be heading, what the Bucks are looking to get back and why it does or doesn’t make sense.

Luke Ridnour

Rumored Destinations: New York, Indiana, playoff teams?

Ridnour was one of the quiet first half surprises, the kind of guy who likely caught the eye of many scouts, but wasn’t necessarily making headlines in the news.  While Ridnour hasn’t been able to maintain the absurd hallowed 50/40/90 shooting percentages he had earlier in the year, he’s not far off at 48/40/92.  Add those numbers up with his “the little tough guy” demeanor and veteran know how and you have exactly the kind of backup point guard playoff teams covet.  On top of that, Ridnour has an expiring contract worth $6.5 million.

Ridnour’s name has been connected with the New York Knicks, who would presumably like to dump the two remaining years of Jared Jeffries on the Bucks as they match up perfectly with Ridnour.  The Bucks would probably want Jordan Hill to be included in any deal with the Knicks, as they don’t have a first round pick to make taking Jeffries otherwise worth the Bucks while.

The Indiana-Milwaukee rumors have been running wild as of late, with Troy Murphy being the reported apple of Milwaukee’s eye.  Ridnour would be one of the expiring contracts included in that deal and would serve as little more than a cap figure, as Indiana won’t be making a playoff run or keeping him past this season.

A number of playoff possible teams could use an upgrade at the backup point guard spot, Atlanta and Memphis come to mind, but they all lack the assets to matchup with Ridnour’s contract, so they’d need to involve a third team to get a deal done.  Atlanta does have a first round pick that would attract the Bucks.

Kurt Thomas

Rumored Destinations: Portland, Atlanta, Indiana, playoff teams?

Thomas is the do-it-all backup veteran big man.  Playoff tested and mother approved, Thomas is always an attractive option for teams looking to add size come playoff time.  Word is that he can be had for a second round pick, though that may be changing as the Bucks have positioned themselves as a probable candidate for the eighth seed in the East.  Thomas is the Bucks only reliable backup center and while he occasionally fails to enter a game, is an important insurance policy for Andrew Bogut.

Portland has seen their centers do everything short of spontaneously combust this season, as both Joel Przybilla and Greg Oden are done for the year.  They’ve played frequently with undersized five men like Juwan Howard and Dante Cunningham and could use an upgrade.  They have the expiring contract of Travis Outlaw, a young player who has been productive and could be a good fit for the Bucks, that matches up nicely with Thomas’ expiring $3.6 million contract.

Atlanta has reportedly been dangling Mo Evans in front of the Bucks, but they may need to add that first round pick, or at least a second, to entice the Bucks.  Evans provides some athleticism that the Bucks currently lack, but with the more positive than negative play of Jerry Stackhouse since his arrival, the Bucks are less likely to pick up a wing just for the sake of athleticism.  Plus, the Bucks biggest weakness has been getting to the line, something Evans doesn’t really help with his 1.4 FT’s per 36 minutes.

Thomas has also been rumored to be a piece in the ongoing Troy Murphy talks.

It’s possible another playoff contender (Houston? Brian Cook and a first get it done, but they may be too smart for that, so maybe Boston with Brian Scalabrine and a first) could toss their name in the hat simply by giving up a first round pick.

Hakim Warrick

Rumored Destinations: Indiana

Warrick has found himself in and out of the Bucks power forward rotation, sometimes because of his own doing, and sometimes because of the play of his mates.  The sheer number of good but not untouchable by any means power forwards on the Bucks roster leaves them all as possible trade bait.  Warrick’s attractiveness lays in his athleticism and penchant for getting to the free-throw line.  Warrick is a very good attacking scorer off the bench, even if he doesn’t provide much on the defensive end.  He’s also an expiring $3.0 million dollar contract, which has tied him into the Indiana deal.  That doesn’t seem too likely though; Indiana is going to want SOMETHING for their future in return and Warrick would not figure into their plans.  If Ridnour and Thomas are packaged, don’t look for Warrick to be included too.

For a playoff team looking to add scoring punch though, Warrick could probably be had for a first or second round pick.

Joe Alexander

Rumored Destinations: None

Think of Alexander like milk in your coffee.  He’s not the main attraction, but he can make it a little easier to swallow in the end.  That’s the purpose he’ll serve in trades.  Alexander isn’t the focus of any teams calling the Bucks, but he is an expiring $2.6 million contract and is a young player with upside.  He can fill gaps in salaries for teams looking to acquire Thomas or Warrick and may be tossed into a larger deal as a prospect if a team is looking to dump a bigger salary on the Bucks with hopes of getting at least one future asset out of it.

Ersan Ilyasova

Rumored Destinations: Indiana

Ilyasova is the piece that makes the Pacers look at the Bucks when it comes to trading Murphy.  If the Bucks are willing to include Ilyasova, methinks the deal gets done.  Ilyasova has shown a desire to play defense and rebound, while including touch and shooting ability at the offensive end.  A lot of players can play one end of the court in the NBA, but not many are capable of giving a team stellar production on both sides.  At only 22 with two years left on his contract, Ilyasova has serious upside while coming in at roughly $9 million less than Murphy.  For a cost cutting team and rebuilding team like Indiana, he’s the piece that makes a deal go.  They don’t dump Murphy unless they get a quality young player back.

For the Bucks, they have to weigh the upside of getting a more consistent Troy Murphy for two years at an inflated price versus having a developing and inconsistent Ilyasova for the next three.  While Murphy is as good a rebounder and a better shooter, Ilyasova is the superior defender and higher upside player.   Trading for Murphy indicates a “win now” philosophy has resurfaced in Milwaukee, but the question is, does the trade for Murphy guarantee the Bucks a better playoff slot?  If it doesn’t, gambling that two years of Murphy is better than three years (and then who knows how many more) of Ilyasova isn’t worth it.  I get the feeling that Milwaukee recognizes this.

Final Thoughts

I can’t tell you whether or not the Bucks will make a trade on or before Thursday’s trade deadline.  Only John Hammond holds that knowledge.  The Bucks at the very least have some options.  In any event, don’t expect the Bucks to take on any contracts that extend past two years and only expect someone the Bucks think will put them over the top in regards to playoff position if it’s a player with a year left after this season.  The Bucks don’t want to take on big money, as is the case with most teams in the league.  Cases can be made in favor of some trades and against a few others, but the Bucks must keep an eye towards the future on any deal they do.  Judging from what Hammond has done thus far, I don’t expect that will be an issue.

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The thought of the Nets once again sans D-Ha sounds good to me.  Good enough that I’d expect it to be just the medicine the Bucks need after a very disappointing home loss against Detroit on Tuesday night.

• Chris Douglas-Roberts, he of the 31 and 10 line in Milwaukee earlier this year, after last night’s game from ESPN.com:

“You get surprised a lot in the league. It is what it is,” Douglas-Roberts said. “Things don’t work out all the time. I guess I’m out of the rotation.”

Douglas-Roberts doesn’t plan on discussing the situation with Vandeweghe.

“Absolutely not. I don’t think talks really do anything,” he said. “I’ve probably had the most talks with him on the team. But they don’t do nothing.”

So, no D-Ha, probably no CD-R and an organization recently thrust even further into turmoil?  I like the Bucks odds a lot.  I’m saying 104-95 Milwaukee.  Check out previews at BrewHoop and Nets Are Scorching

Other Notes

• Hakim Warrick in three words: shy, dunk, Playstation.  Jodie Meeks in three words: rookie, cliche, Kentucky.  Aron Phillips at Dime has the goods on them both.
  

• The Cavs don’t want to part with J.J. Hickson and that may leave the Pacers to pursue other options with Troy Murphy. Could the Bucks be an option?  Word is they are in talks.  I’m not sure how serious it is right now, but things could heat up before next Thursday’s trade deadline.  From Brian Winhorst at the Cleveland Plain-Dealer:

The Pacers, a source said, are also in talks with the Milwaukee Bucks and Sacramento Kings involving Murphy and both teams can offer expiring contracts.

• Andrew Bogut is approaching some milestones as an Australian.  More on this in the coming weeks.

• Tom Enlund has an update on Joe Alexander’s D-League progress.

• Paul Swaney of StadiumJourney.com recently visited the Bradley Center and made a poor food decision.

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(Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images) Hak' = Dunk

New York’s basketball team isn’t typically apart of my basketball viewing schedule.  They aren’t on national television very often and when they are I tend to look the other way.  I’m not big on teams that have gutted their roster in order to pursue free agents.    While I generally liked Mike D’Antoni’s Suns teams, I know the Knicks can’t be as efficient, mainly because they have few shooters and even less competent point guards.  Plus they play even less defense than those Suns teams did.  There’s a word that I can’t think of right now that would describe them aptly I assumed, but I had little proof since I never watched them.  But I had high hopes for the Bucks on Friday night coming into their game on Broadway.

Then Andrew Bogut got hurt.  So I went from hopeful that the Bucks would be able to leave the Big Apple with a win, to downtrodden that Bogut’s injury might be more than a migraine.  My thought process went something like this:

Migraine?  What?  He’s never had migraines before.  Didn’t he just take a charge a minute or two ago?  Is this another back injury?  Will we see Bogut again this season?  Is his career in jeopardy?

So that may have been an overreaction.  Call me a little snake bit after years of injury problems that seem to never end and spread across the roster.  Bogut walked out fine, no limp, no slouch, no teammates dragging his body to the locker room, so I’ll operate going forward under the assumption that all is well.  As for Friday night’s game, I thought of the word I was looking for and it isn’t even very fancy.  Simply put, the Knicks are defenseless.

Offense

There was lots and lots of offense in this one, specifically from Brandon Jennings, though little of it came early in the game.  A 1-9 start probably was predictable given the circumstances coming into this game – the often inaccurate Jennings’ first trip to the big city of New York, a team that passed on him quite famously now.  What was unpredictable though, and delightful actually, was the way Jennings would rebound after the poor start.  With Bogut out, Jennings took a very active role in the offense and finished the game hitting seven of his next 14 shots.  8-23 won’t change a lot of the opinions on Jennings’ abilities offensively, but those wins the Bucks keep getting might.  Jennings finished the game with 22 points and eight assists against just two turnovers.  That’ll do.

• There would have been lots of “Turkish Thunder” chants out of Squad Six had this game happened at the Bradley Center, because Ersan Ilyasova subbed in wonderfully for Andrew Bogut.  25 points and nine rebounds on a very shiny 10-18 shooting line.  Ersa Major hit two of his three three-point attempts and even made a free-throw near the end of the game!  He was his typical pesky self, tipping balls and drawing charges in other facets of the game, the biggest difference was that he was just making his open shots.  It’s just that simple.

• Hakim Warrick: Dunks.

• The ever-giving New York defense allowed the Bucks to shoot 47.8 percent and 41.7 percent on three’s.  Charlie Bell was 3-4, Carlos Delfino was 2-6 and Jennings was 2-7.  Delfino’s line was particularly dazzling, as he tossed in nine rebounds, six assists and three steals on top of his 13 points.  Team efforts win games for the Bucks, especially with Bogut out.

Defense

I’m not going to lie; I can’t see David Lee as an all-star.  32 points and 15 rebounds look terrific, but every Buck and their mom was getting baskets inside.  The Bucks shot 62.9 percent at the rim Friday which was considerably better than the 45 percent they shot on Tuesday in Orlando.  A lot of Orlando’s success had to do with the all-star they had playing defense inside.  A lot of New York’s struggles are their system and generally lack of effort on defense, but some of it is David Lee being a non-factor taking charges or blocking shots.  Granted, he’s probably a power forward playing center, so I shouldn’t toss all the blame on him, but he’s got to do a little more on defense if he ever wants to get to the next level.

• Without Bogut, the Bucks weren’t able to force as many turnovers as they’d like, but this game was more about who could score more efficiently anyway.  The key to the Bucks defense Friday was doing their best to sloppy up the Knicks already helter-skelter attack and run out at shooters.  They held the Knicks to a worse shooting percentage then they shot themselves and that’s a great way to beat the Knicks.

Final Thoughts

A winning road trip for the Milwaukee Bucks, what a novel concept.  Yes, the road trip was three games and one was in Miami and another in New York, but road wins are road wins.  The Bucks may not have that signature road win Scott Skiles has been looking for, but, sitting just a game back of Miami for the eighth seed with the tiebreaker in hand the Bucks can feel pretty good coming home today.  With Indiana awaiting them at the Bradley Center on Brandon Jennings bobblehead night, the easily scheduled month of February still looks promising for the Bucks.

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(Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images) Warrick found little room to operate Tuesday night

One thing was very clear by the end of Tuesday night’s Bucks game in Orlando: Orlando is very good, much better than Milwaukee.  Breaking news, I know, but I just wanted to get that out there so we were all on the same page, just in case by some chance we weren’t.  The Magic are a NBA Finals contender and the Bucks are finally scraping back towards respectability, unfortunately that’s just the reality of the situation.  So it’s hard to be too heartbroken about a blowout loss in The Magic Kingdom.  The Bucks had been playing some of their best basketball of the season before Tuesday’s game, but it was apparently too much to ask for that to continue on through the evening.  The question going forward will be whether or not Tuesday had more to do with playing against Orlando or whether the not-so-long-ago inconsistent Bucks have once again reared their ugly head.

Offense

Non-existent once again, the Bucks shot just 36.3 percent.  When Jodie Meeks is getting playing time at this point, it’s generally a bad sign.  It seems to mean no answers are apparent or the Bucks are looking tired and ragged.  Both of those schools of thought applied to a Bucks team in the second game of a road back-to-back.

• Andrew Bogut had another double-double, but it was on the low end of the double-double spectrum at 10 points and 10 rebounds.  Bogut had eight points in the first six minutes and wasn’t able to get back in a rhythm again.  A good example of Bogut’s importance came in the second quarter when he went to the bench with his second foul (and perhaps fatigue) with 7:26 left in the half.  The Bucks trailed by four at the time and when Bogut reentered to begin the second half the Bucks trailed by 14.  Without his defense and offense the Bucks went into a funk that would prove to be too much to overcome.  It was never a game again.

• Brandon Jennings did serious work against the Heat on Monday distributing the ball and controlling the game.  He never had the same impact on Tuesday and that probably had a lot to do with Dwight Howard roaming the court and staying with Jennings’ favorite big man.  Jennings ended the evening with just four assists, certainly not enough to offset his poor shooting night (1-7).  The Jennings/Bogut pick and roll never got off the ground Tuesday.

• Milwaukee doesn’t take a lot of free-throws, so when they get to the line it’s that much more important that they are connecting.  Tuesday was not a banner day for free-throw percentages as the Bucks shot just 9-19, headlined by Hakim Warrick’s 1-6 effort.  Hak’ was getting to the line with his typically assortment of pump-fakes and attack moves, but it didn’t do much good when he kept missing the freebies.

Defense

Three-point shots have been a theme in the Magic’s wins over the Bucks.  They finish the three game series 27-59 (45.7%) against Milwaukee from downtown.  Defending the three was an important part of Coach Scott Skiles philosophy of how to defense Orlando when the Magic first came to Milwaukee and the Bucks did it well for the first half of that first game.  Since then, the wheels have come off for the Bucks when they meet Orlando and they certainly aren’t alone in that sense.

• Vince Carter nearly had a triple-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists after struggling for the entire month of January.  All he needed was a game against the Bucks, who he’d been averaging roughly 75 points per game against this year (actually more like 25, but you get what I’m sayin!).  Carter is the worst possible match-up for the Bucks, a big two who likes to attack and can shoot it.

• Milwaukee was able to force some turnovers, 14, but as has often been the case, was unable to transform them into many easy baskets.  The Bucks had just six fast break points, an all too typical number for a team forcing so many turnovers.  The Bucks scored just 16 points off 14 turnovers, while the Magic were able to score 10 off nine Bucks miscues.

Final Thoughts

So Milwaukee wasn’t able to get the “signature” win they’ve been looking for lately, but that may have been a bit too much to ask for when you look at Orlando’s loaded roster.  They have guys not playing that would vie for a starting spot with Milwaukee.  Worse yet, the Bucks offense went frigid and they displayed many of the characteristics of the Bucks team of December that has Milwaukee in the current predicament on the outside of the playoffs looking in.  But a lot of teams look their worst when facing Orlando’s stingy defense and adept three-point attack, then turn around head to New York and win by double figures.  Milwaukee will get their chance Friday.

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In front of what appeared to be only close friends and relatives of both teams, it was very clear that the Miami Heat can be boiled down to two parts: Dwyane Wade and a bunch of guys.  Just as clear Monday night was that the Bucks continue their recent uptick in play and are looking more and more like a team that has begun to figure things out.  I’ve been contesting that the Bucks have looked like a much better team since an overtime loss on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Houston and the numbers don’t lie.

In the eight games starting with the loss at Houston, the Bucks are 5-3 with a +7.5 scoring margin.  One of the biggest reasons for the recent Bucks miniature surge has simply been consistent offense.  All season long the Bucks have played stifling defense, but have struggled to put the ball through the rim on the other end.  Andrew Bogut has averaged 20.4 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game, but the most important statistic for Bogut has been his 68 percent shooting.  All year he’s been pretty good for the Bucks, but he’s only been hitting around half it shots, which is a little below average for a seven-footer as talented as he.  The 68 percent shooting provides the Bucks a solid base for their attack.

(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images) This is a confident bunch right here. Except Jodie Meeks, he's just kind of there.

Monday night, Bogut was again the focal point for the Bucks.  After missing their first 10 shots, the Bucks were able to find Bogut for a few easy ones to get them going.  Bogut finished the first quarter with eight, the Bucks finished the quarter with the lead and the Heat were just about finished, as they made only cursory runs the rest of the way.  I guess that’s what happens when Wade has a bad night, because Milwaukee has now seen D-Wade twice this year when he’s been off and the rest of the Heat haven’t responded kindly to their stars struggles.

Offense

After the eight point first quarter, Bogut did not let up.  He finished the evening with 22 points and 11 rebounds on 10-13 shooting.  As has been the case in nearly all of the Bucks wins lately though, it was not a one man show.

• Carlos Delfino continued to make my earlier near constant complaining about him look ill informed and foolish by chipping in 16 more points and 10 more rebounds.  As long as I’m rehashing the last eight games, let me give you Delfino’s numbers: 15.8 points and 8.1 boards on 49 percent shooting.  The refrain on Delfino is that he can do a lot of things well, but not one so well as to make him stand out, but lately he’s taken each thing he does well and brought up to another level.  His shooting has been better, he’s finished around the rim, he’s been getting some steals and he’s been rebounding incredibly well for a small forward.  Had this Carlos Delfino been playing for the Bucks all year, I have no doubts they’d be at or above .500.  Consistency was a struggle for Delfino in the first half, but somehow he’s figured it out in half two of this season.

• Rim.  That’s the word I’d say if I was doing word association with Hakim Warrick. Warrick had two dunks that helped energize a slow starting Bucks team and his own offensive game on Monday.  After the dunks it was clear Hak’ was kind of feeling it, as he displayed a nice little pivot and jab-step game that I hadn’t seen before which eventually led to a jumper.  The straight “I want to rip the rim off right now” dunks are what Hak’s best for though.  Those are fun.

• There was a brief moment of panic for me while watching this one though, I’ll admit that.  It looked like the Heat may have called up to Toronto and asked them what they did to Milwaukee in the fourth quarter last week to shut them down so bad.  Naturally, Toronto would have informed the Heat that their zone stifled the Bucks and errant jumpers rained from every which way.  The Heat went into a zone and had the game down to 11 at one point.  Then Charlie Bell got nasty and hit a couple threes and the Bucks had breathing room again.  Sometimes it just boils down to hitting shots, and the Bucks were able to do that for most of the evening Monday.

Defense

It’s not easy to win when you shoot 36.4 percent and the Bucks know that as well as any team in the league, so it’s good to see the opposition struggling for once.  Miami has turned in as brutal a two game performance as I’ve seen out of any opponent the Bucks have had in years.

• These two games were a great lesson on how nice it is to have a real legitimate star player on your team.  Miami would be the New Jersey Nets without Dwyane Wade and there is an overwhelming amount of evidence supporting that claim in these two efforts, right down to the pathetic attendance.  With Wade though, they are eighth in the East, which probably says as much about the East as it does about how good Wade is.

Final Thoughts

Coach Scott Skiles has been looking for a “signature” road win for some time.  He thought they had one in Dallas and that didn’t quite work out.  They had a shot in Toronto too, but that didn’t quite work out either.  So getting a road win against the team directly in front of them in the Eastern Conference is nice, but may not classify as the signature he was looking for.  You know what would qualify for sure?  A win in Orlando.  That would be a big, fat John Hancock of a signature road win, and with the way the Bucks have played lately, can’t be ruled out just yet.  Check back with me after the first half tomorrow and I may be singing a different tune, but the Bucks look like they’ll be bringing it for a while.

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Dear Dwyane Wade,

Flash, you truly are the gift that keeps on giving.  You’re generosity when it comes to the city where it is windy rather than the Windy City seems to know no bounds.  Aside from delivering what will probably be Marquette’s only Final Four in the first quarter of this century, you’ve shown up at Marquette Madness in order to help with the always challenging recruiting battle and you worked with the university to secure a sponsorship deal through first Converse and now your Jordan brand.  A more dedicated alumni you cannot have been.

(Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images) The way things were going for Wade on Saturday this was probably a turnover.

But Marquette is not the only basketball program that’s reaped the benefits of your significant Milwaukee pull. In the nine Heat games played in Milwaukee during your pro career that you’ve played in coming in to Saturday night, the Bucks have had an average attendance of 16,546, roughly five hundred people better than their average attendance over the last six years. See, those fans come to see you play well, but they still are Milwaukeeans.  They don’t want to see the Bucks lose to a team from a city where the weather is nice and the night life is livelier. They want a Bucks victory with their great Wade play.  You bring them, but they cheer for the other team – funny how that works.

And things were no different Saturday night.  You may have got the loudest cheer during introductions, but throughout the game a passionate fan base cheered on their Bucks.  In turn, the Bucks gave them lots to cheer about.  The Bucks were able to do work for most of the night against your seriously over matched Heat team, but that’s not really your fault.  You don’t have much of a supporting cast down in South Beach or anywhere else you play actually.  Carlos Arroyo?  Joel Anthony?  If you don’t have a superstar night scoring and fail to set up your teammates on a silver platter, you guys are going to struggle.

And you didn’t have a superstar night Saturday.  Five fouls on Dwyane Wade, who are they trying to kid, right?  The fouls weren’t your only problem though: 21 points on 6-20 shooting with four turnovers in a 95-84 loss is probably not the way you envisioned your only trip back to the Mil going.  On the plus side, you made a couple plays that drew ooo’s and ahh’s from the crowd and Marquette pulled off an upset at Connecticut, so you and your old boys gave Milwaukee plenty to smile about Saturday.

It’s not all gumdrops and lollypops when you come around though. Your play turns people into conspiracy theorists on par with Mel Gibson’s character in the aptly titled 1997 movie “Conspiracy Theory”. I’m sure some thought you could have taken a bat onto the court to play defense with after committing your fifth foul and the refs would have looked the other way each time you swung it. But we can’t love everything about you, right?

Overall, its clear Milwaukee’s love affair with Dwyane Wade is as strong as ever, you just give too much for everyone to forget you D-Wade.  And about the rough night Saturday, remember: fall down eight, get up seven … or something like that.

Regards,

Bucksketball.com

PS.

Don’t get revenge Monday night.

Odds and Ends

• After leading by a comfortable margin for what seemed like the entire game, Milwaukee nearly blew this one.  Fortunately, Brandon Jennings drilled a key three-pointer late to put the Bucks up eight and ultimately seal the deal.  Balance was the key word of the evening though: Jennings 17 points, Andrew Bogut 17 points 15 rebounds, Hakim Warrick 22 and Carlos Delfino 16 plus stellar defense on Wade.

• He’s turning the ball over a bit much for my liking, but Jerry Stackhouse has been a nice offensive option in his first forays into games so far.  He typically looks tired when he gets back in later, but when Stackhouse gets in for the first time he’s played very heady ball and been good about knowing when to shoot and when to pass.  In a second quarter the Bucks won by 16, Stack chipped in eight points and two assists on 4-6 shooting.

• January averages for Delfino and Warrick (the last column is three-point percentage for Carlos and free-throw percentage for Warrick).

So, yeah, I can live with those numbers.  For a Bucks team that’s been searching for offense all year, they may have two possible solutions staring them in the eye.  How either of them has been able to find consistency after this long is a mystery to me, but a delightful one.

Final Thoughts

I’m not sure whether to be nervous about Monday’s game at Miami or excited about it.  On one hand, it’s pretty clear that a Heat team without Michael Beasley is essentially devoid a second option on offense and not very good.  On the other hand, Angry Dwyane Wade possibilities are endless.  I do have faith in the Bucks typically stingy defense, so I’ll just assume even if Wade comes out and gets his Monday they’ll be able to hold the rest of the team at bay.  The Bucks have been playing very good basketball for nearly two weeks now and they are very due for a big road win.  The opportunity awaits Monday evening.

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(Probable) Inactives: Joe Alexander, Michael Redd and Francisco Elson

Vs.

Philadelphia 76ers (Eddie Jordan) 15-29

(Probable) Inactives:  Primoz Brezec and Jason Kapono

Date: 1/27/2010

Game Time: 7:00 (CST)

TV: FS Wisconsin

Match-Ups

Point Guard

Brandon Jennings vs. Jrue Holiday

The guy the Bucks drafted versus the guy they thought about drafting.  It’s safe to say, that for this year the Bucks should be glad they went with Jennings.  Holiday is already a better defender than Jennings, but not the playmaker or shot-taker (and occasional shot-maker) that BJ is.  Holiday has only recently been given the keys to the car that is the starting line-up and is kind of taking on the “Royal Ivey Memorial Starting Point Guard” role.  He’s getting around 15 minutes, is expected to play defense, distribute the ball and not make mistakes.  It will be interesting to see if Jennings has a little extra pep in his step going at another rookie.

Advantage: Bucks

Shooting Guard

Charlie Bell vs. Allen Iverson

Iverson, everyone’s least favorite all star starter, is clearly no longer the threat he once was.  He’s still quick, just not game altering quick.  He can still hit some tough shots, just not as many or as tough.  He can still get a few steals, just not enough to make up for his otherwise poor defense.  In short, Iverson isn’t scaring anyone these days and is just an undersized talented scoring guard.  He can’t shoot it from deep, but will still get to the line on occasion.  I’m nowhere near as worried about him as I should have been about Jason Terry when it comes to undersized two’s.  I’m still bummed about how many shots Terry drilled Tuesday night, he was a beast.  Iverson?  Not such a beast, at least I don’t suspect he will be.  As far as Bell goes, I’d love to see him make his open shots.  It’d be great.

Advantage: Sixers

Small Forward

Carlos Delfino vs. Andre Iguodala

I was worried about Shawn Marion attacking the Bucks Tuesday night, as they don’t really have anyone who could match his athleticism, but that never really came to fruition as he took just eight shots.  I don’t think Iggy will be as limited in his shot attempts Wednesday night and his athleticism is no joke either.  Delfino is a good defender, but could see some foul trouble if the ball is frequently in the hands of Iguodala.   Surprisingly, Iguodala is only getting around four shots at the rim per game, so it seems like he’s a little too content to pull-up rather than use his handle and hops to get to the bucket.  The Bucks will be glad to let him bomb away from 20-feet so long as he’s not getting to the free throw line.  As far as Delfino goes, let’s just hope this hot streak becomes something more than a streak.  It’s getting closer with each passing game to becoming normal.

Advantage: Sixers

Power Forward

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute vs. Elton Brand

It’s not often LRMAM is going to have to deal with real traditional post-up power forwards, but that’s what he’ll be facing against Philly.  Brand is still a throw back; he can pound it down low, but hit the 16-foot jump shot with some regularity.  After a rough first couple months again this year, Brand has picked it up some in December and January, getting his shooting percentage back over 50 percent for the first time in a long time.  He’s not grabbing quite as many rebounds these days, but that may have something to do with Sam Dalembert grabbing most of the available rebounds out there.  Brand is as strong a power forward as the undersized Mbah a Moute has had to deal with in some time so it’ll be interesting to see if the Sixers try and take advantage of that.

Advantage: Sixers

Center

Andrew Bogut vs. Samuel Dalembert

After a career high scoring effort, Bogut gets to deal with an old nemesis in Dalembert.  Traditionally a load on the defensive side of the ball if not such an offensive force, Dalmbert has been true to form over his last few games.  In his last three efforts the Haitian Hero has shot just 2-13, but grabbed over 10 rebounds and had at least three blocks and steals combined in each game.  Dalembert has been doing some great work for the people of Haiti after the recent earthquake devastation and continues to play while dealing with that aftermath.  He can be looked at as an inspiration during these trying times for those in need over there.  Bogut will need to get right into the Sixers long, athletic center and knock him back a little before trying to float his short hooks over him, otherwise Dalembert my really disrupt the Bucks big man’s touch.

Advantage: Bucks

Bench

Ersan Ilyasova, Luke Ridnour, Jerry Stackhouse, Kurt Thomas and Hakim Warrick

Vs.

Lou Williams, Thaddeus Young, Willie Green and Mareese Speights

Holy young and talented bench!  Look at the Sixers!  Their bench sums up a lot of their current problems actually, a bunch of athletic guys who can play a few positions well but don’t really fit so well together in the system they’re in right now.  If the Sixers had a true point guard to bring everything together they’d benefit quite a bit, but Lou Williams couldn’t fill that role and neither can Iverson.  Speights is a beast and would be a great fit next to Bogut on the Bucks frontline.  I dream.  I’d think Warrick might be in line for some tick against an athletic squad like the Sixers, but his time recently seems to have depended on whether or not Ilyasova plays well upon entering the game.

Advantage: Bucks

Prediction: Bucks 103 – Sixers 99

Looking at the Sixers record and the Sixers talent doesn’t quite make sense, but like I said that’s the power of having someone to bring together a bunch of multi-talented players.  They’re like a talented orchestra with no one to conduct.  That being said they could still give the Bucks a great run based on the talent mismatches alone, so it’ll be important for Milwaukee the be hustling for loose balls, forcing turnovers and making open shots against the Sixers.  If Milwaukee is missing and the Sixers can get out and run off long rebounds things could spiral out of control for the Bucks.

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