That Signature Road Win You Hear So Much About: Bucks 102 – Nuggets 97

March 21, 2010

Recap/Box Score

After intensity lagged considerably against the Clippers and Kings, one could only assume things had to get better against the Nuggets for the Bucks Saturday.  Unfortunately, they were coming off a double overtime game Friday night, got to their hotel around four in the morning Milwaukee time and were facing a team with the third best home record in the league.  So this one was over before it started.

I mean, you just can’t expect to write the Bucks off so easily and then not have them win.  That’s just not how they roll.

Forgive me for sounding like a broken record lately, but once again, the Bucks have another win that can be placed on the pedestal as “their best win of the year”.  That’s becoming a recurring theme, no?  Beat the Cavs, (still a good win even if they were without Lebron James) best win of the year.  A full strength Celtics team drops one to the Bucks: Milwaukee’s best win of the year.  The scorching hot Jazz can’t topple the Bucks either?  That was the best win of the year.  Regardless of which win was your personal favorite or which one should stand out as the signature on what’s becoming a thrill ride of a Bucks season, they all count for one and they’re all sending the same message: these Milwaukee Bucks are for real.

I will say I enjoy the road wins a little more, especially the ones against upper-echelon teams.  For so long the Bucks have been automatic losses when heading into opponents territory, even as recently as earlier this season.  Now the Bucks have a fighting chance wherever they go.  Scott Skiles said earlier this year that he thought it’d take 15 road wins for this team to make it to the playoffs.  As he was saying that he was pining for a signature road win too.  He wanted to beat a real legit team on their court, probably for the sake of his own guys’ mentality.  If they want to win in the playoffs, they’re going to have to beat some playoff teams on the road.  As recently as Saturday morning, the Bucks still hadn’t proven to themselves that they could do that.

Well, they finally did it Saturday night.  Even sweeter?  They did it in their 15th road win.  Playoffs … playoffs … playoffs … Read More »

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An Unsatisfying Victory is Still a Victory: Bucks 98 – Pacers 94

March 14, 2010

Recap/Box Score

Saturday night I ventured to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner.  Unfortunately, the wait was to be over 30 minutes and my friends and I were too hungry to wait..  With a lack of other options in the area, we settled on Applebees.

I’m not an Applebees guy; they’ve screwed up my mediocre food far too many times, so I was heading there with trepidation to begin with.  The mental transition I had to make in going from wings at BW3’s to whatever I’d have at Applebees had me down too.  Naturally, after we were seated and ordered, each of my friends received their food, while mine didn’t arrive.  A mistake was made, the order wasn’t placed and my food wasn’t ready.  I had to wait another 10 minutes to get my food.

My meal ended up being better than I expected and they gave it to me on the house for my troubles, so when it was all said and done I was pretty pleased with the end result.  Still, the process I went through was unsatisfying.

And by describing my Saturday evening dining experience, I’ve more or less told you the story of the Bucks-Pacers game Sunday afternoon.  The Bucks played down to the Pacers level, which made for some sloppy basketball and an overall unsatisfying experience.  Coming off three straight thrillers against Cleveland, Boston and Utah, I didn’t expect this one to be high theater, but I was hoping for a crisp game at least.  I shouldn’t be surprised though.  If the Bucks last three opponents are the equivalent to my BW3’s, then Indiana is absolutely my Applebees.

Still, the Bucks got the W and no matter what the game looked like Milwaukee is one step closer to a playoff spot and a fifth seed.  And that sounds about as good as a free meal to me. Read More »

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The Bucks and (even more) Trade Rumors UPDATE 2-17 10:29 AM

February 17, 2010

So.

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.

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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Navigating Through the Swamp of Trade Rumors

February 15, 2010

The weeks and days leading up to the trade deadline involve so many rumors that it’s hard to keep track of what’s reality and what’s fiction.

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. Read More »

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Turning Superhuman into Super Human: Defending Dwyane Wade

January 31, 2010

6-20 for 21 points.  That was Dwyane Wade’s final shooting line Saturday night and that was probably everything the Bucks could have asked for.  That sort of night out of a player like Wade is part good defense and part good luck, but probably more good defense than we realize.  I took the time to break down every one of Wade’s shots and so I could see how the Bucks had such success against one of the better players in the NBA today.  Enjoy.

(There’s a synopsis of the whole thing at the end if you don’t want to wade through it all.  Get it, wade through? Ah, I do what I can.)

(Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images) Wade did not have a happy (second) homecoming this year.

(Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images) Wade did not have a happy (second) homecoming this year.

1-1: Wade catches it coming off a Jermaine O’Neal screen and then gets another screen from O’Neal off the dribble.  He’s able to take it right a back pedaling Andrew Bogut and hit a floater without a hand in his face.  When Wade’s isolated against Bogut like that it’s obviously not going to favor the Bucks very often.  Bogut isn’t quick enough with his hands to be able to contest a Wade shot without being susceptible to a fake and dunk combo. Read More »

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