Kramer saw a surprising amount of playing time in the Bucks pre-season opener, helping the Bucks seal the game near the end with a floater that banked in.  He also gave the fans a thrill with a highlight block of Brian Scalabrine. Somewhere, Michael Irvin was excited about the white on white crime.  Kramer is probably no closer to making the team than he was when he initially signed up to be a training camp body, but he has likely improved his odds greatly when it comes to earning a spot in the D-League or over in Europe.  Kramer could very well be in demand or be one of the three players cut from Bucks camp that gets his rights requested by the Bucks D-League affiliate in Fort Wayne, the Mad-Ants.

• A survey was done of the opinions of NBA General Managers.

You’ll notice there is not much about the Bucks in there.  They did receive one vote as the league’s best defensive team, so they have that going for them.  Unfortunately, there is not one general manager (GMs could not vote for their own team though) that felt like any Bucks player deserved any top recognition.  Luc Richard Mbah a Moute did not receive a vote for best defensive player or best on ball defender or best perimeter defender.  Ersan Ilyasova did get a vote as a possible breakout international player and Larry Sanders was one of about 20 rookies who could be a sleeper success, but don’t look for much else regarding the Bucks.  The Bulls received 82% of the vote as winners of the Central Division, which doesn’t surprise me.  I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

• Charles F. Gardner reports that Andrew Bogut is doubtful for this weekend’s games.

If Bogut truly doesn’t play (you never really know until you know, you know?) we’ll still really not be able to judge what the Bucks are going to look like this season.  For now, we get a sense of what Drew Gooden will bring to the team, but I’m anxious to see how he plays off Bogut.  One of Bogut’s strongest assets is his passing ability, so it’ll be interesting to see if he can find Gooden for some easy baskets.  Bogut’s never really had a talented, veteran power forward to play off of him before and Gooden may be the guy to bring out the best in Bogut as a passer.  That all being said, I’m all for Bogut sitting out this weekend, if only because these games mean nothing and the only meaningful thing that can happen in these games is an injury.

• Scott Skiles has generally positive things to say about Larry Sanders to Tom Enlund in this piece.

“Less and less mixed up” seems to be the way Skiles says someone is figuring things out, but still has a ways to go.  At this very, very early juncture, one area that might be worth your concern regarding Sanders is his rebounding.  His totals in summer league weren’t eye-popping and he was only able to grab two in 14 minutes against the Bulls.  Rebounding seems to be an area where the Bucks should thrive this year, so it’s not a super pressing issue, but is something to keep an eye on going forward.  Speaking of Sanders, he gets nervous.

Jeremy Schmidt writes the Milwaukee Bucks blog Bucksketball.com.  Follow him on Twitter

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Finding a backup center for Andrew Bogut hasn’t been an easy task for the Milwaukee Bucks since their center was picked number one in 2005.  Now, finally, the Bucks may have the inside track on the reasonably priced, veteran big man they’ve been searching for all of these years.

Sam Amick of AOL Fanhouse is reporting that Erick Dampier is considering joining the Milwaukee Bucks.

Dampier would see significant time playing behind center Andrew Bogut. He was told as much by Scott Skiles, according to the sources, as he spoke with the Bucks coach recently about how he would fit and was pleased with the tone of the discussion.

Given the Bucks salary cap situation, the best they can do for Dampier is a veterans’ minimum salary offer of $1.3 million. 

The importance of the salary in the Dampier situation has yet to really be illustrated.  Miami had appeared to have been interested in signing Dampier aboard to beef up their front line, but backed off suddenly, supposedly due to the confidence in their current front court rotation.  Miami had only the minimum available to offer Dampier and if he was willing to accept the Heat’s meager offer to play for a team everyone thinks will contend for, if not win, the title, he may be willing to accept what the Bucks are offering to advance deeper into the playoffs.

A possible addition of Dampier would leave the Bucks loaded with bodies (some bigger than others) up front.  Milwaukee would obviously have Bogut and Dampier as their natural centers, with Drew Gooden, Jon Brockman, Larry Sanders, Ersan Ilyasova and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute likely all vying for playing time at power forward.  Given that Dampier’s contract would push the Bucks roster count up to 17, it’s likely Tiny Gallon’s non-guaranteed deal will be a camp casualty.  In addition, a recent Tweet from Gery Woelfel indicated that Milwaukee won’t have the services of Darington Hobson for at least three months.  Upon further searching, it does appear that Tweet’s been deleted, so we’ll have to see how that shakes out.  If the Bucks could work out an injury settlement with Hobson and release Gallon, that would free up a spot on the 15-man roster for Dampier.

But that doesn’t mean that’s the last we’ll have seen of Gallon and Hobson, if they are indeed released.

A new NBA/D-League allocation rule implementation that is reportedly set to take place, would allow three players released from a team’s training camp to join a team’s D-League affiliate while not having to remain on the 15-man roster.  At the moment, I’m not certain whether or not those players technically remain property of the team that had previously cut them, or if this just means they go to that team’s affiliate.  I’ll do my best to update this when that information becomes available.

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I’ll assume you’ve seen Almost Famous.  Surely you remember the bus ride scene in which they all sing Tiny Dancer.  What a fun moment that was (here’s a link), albeit incredibly unlikely.  The Allman Brothers (or whatever other band this band is based on) breaking out into an Elton John song on a bus ride after a long night of partying probably didn’t happen too often.  I’ve never taken LSD or rode on a bus with a bunch of musicians who may still be tripping though, so maybe I just don’t know enough about this sort of thing.  Regardless, the song is a touch delightful with a lot of catchy.  Dave Grohl did an enjoyable version of it on Craig Kilborn’s show once too (and if you have time, check out the Grohl and Will Ferrell “Leather and Lace” duet on the right of the video).  At this point, I’m sure you’re wondering why any of this matters anyway (though the title of the post may have tipped you off).

Since the moment the Bucks selected Tiny Gallon in the second round, I’ve often found myself with this song stuck in my head.  Except it’d go, “Hold me closer Tiny Gallon.”  That didn’t feel right though; I’ve never actually wanted, and surely will never want, Tiny Gallon to hold me.

So I decided to rewrite the lyrics in a way that fits Mr. Gallon a little bit better since we haven’t quite gotten to media day and much real news yet.  So without further ado, here we go.

Jeremy Schmidt writes the Milwaukee Bucks blog Bucksketball.com

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Darington Hobson has finally been signed.  Tiny Gallon?  Not so much.

Hobson’s signing pushes the Bucks roster to its regular season 15-man limit, which likely means Gallon will be playing elsewhere this season.  Whether that is Europe or in another NBA city remains to be seen.  The Bucks certainly can bring more than 15 players to training camp as they did last season, but guaranteed contracts do the talking in the NBA and Hobson’s is the 15th.

If Gallon ends up in Europe or the D-League for the duration of 2010-11, his rights will remain with the Bucks.  Gallon has become a bit of an uncertainty since his well received June drafting.  The Bucks have loaded up on power forwards this summer and Gallon’s play in summer league was inconsistent.  He showed signs as a rebounder and scorer around the rim, but struggled to finish on his post moves and often drifted around the perimeter.  Receiving a tongue lashing after just one game with regard to his effort and attitude from Glen Davis could have been perceived as a negative too.  If a rookie has problems with attitude and focus while trying to solidify a spot, what will he do when he gets guaranteed money?

So while Gallon still appears to have potential that is eclipsed only by his weight, he does have some things to work on.  If he does end up in Europe, that would be an encouraging sign for those who hope the Bucks hold on to him.  Free development while not taking up a roster spot has a lot more upside than downside and, in the case of Ersan Ilyasova, has served the Bucks well before.  Of course, it’s worked against the Bucks too (see Griffith, Rashard).  It’s likely that if Gallon does land in Europe, it won’t be more than a short excursion though. and he’ll look to return next season.  But don’t think you’ve heard the last of Gallon.

He is sure to keep us all updated on how misunderstood he is when he does start on his professional journey though, as he’s an exceptionally active Tweeter.  And with a tag like “WeHateTiny23“, going unsigned is sure to add more fuel to that fire that Gallon apparently uses to motivate himself.  Whether that results in a productive NBA player remains to be seen.

Hobson, who did not play in summer league due to injury, should be one of the answers to the mystery of just who will take up the other two spots next to Michael Redd on the reserved list next season.  A versatile small forward, Hobson will have the luxury of sitting back and learning in practice and while watching his teammates do their thing on a veteran laden Bucks squad.

Jeremy Schmidt writes the Milwaukee Bucks blog Bucksketball.com

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That’s why Milwaukee has wanted to see the back of Michael Redd’s number 22 jersey walking out of the Bradley Center never to return for a number of years. He’s a link to the old regime, he and Dan Gadzuric, deservedly or not, were symbolic of everything that’s been bad in Milwaukee Bucks basketball over the past twenty years. Overpaid, under-productive and defensively deficient. Long ago the city of Milwaukee’s patience with Michael Redd ran out.

And at this point, that seems fair.

But why has patience already begun to wear thin for rookie Tiny Gallon?

Can we not remember when Michael Redd was everything Milwaukee loved? The second-round pick turned success story? Back before Mike Redd was Max Redd, he  was appropriately paid, perhaps even underpaid, and a reliable offensive performer. But that didn’t happen over night. He entered the league a poor shooting offensive player, but turned himself into a threat after a season paying close attention to Ray Allen. Redd happened to join the Bucks the last time they were relevant, in their division winning 2000-01 season.

Gallon is joining a Milwaukee squad on the verge of something big too. And with all of the talented front court players Milwaukee boasts, he’ll have the opportunity to learn how to be an NBA player without facing much real pressure. Yet he’s already catching some heat after a so-so summer league performance. Okay, maybe I’m being a bit too friendly. After an ugly summer league performance. One in which he racked up 23 fouls to match his 20 turnovers. But it still feels awfully early to be calling for the young man’s head. The loose interpretation of some Scott Skiles quotes has fueled the fire though.

When I see Coach Skiles say Gallon has ‘an awful lot to work on’ and is ‘going to need to be a lot better to make our team and do anything.’ I don’t get concerned. I get excited. That’s how young players get developed in the league. No hand-holding, no bsing, just an organization getting serious with its players. While Coach Skiles is saying that, the assistants are working hard with Gallon to make sure he knows where he needs to improve. To me, Skiles quotes are not an indication that Gallon isn’t going to be apart of Milwaukee’s future, just a comment on how talented Milwaukee is these days.

Three years ago, Milwaukee may have had to toss Gallon right into the fire. With a dearth of draft picks and few players who could even loosely be referred to as prospects (David Noel anyone?), Milwaukee may quickly have attached the ‘next big thing’ label to Gallon. Now Milwaukee can make sure he commits himself the right way. If Gallon is willing to turn himself into the player the Bucks want him to be, the sky is the limit for him down the road. The man has paws as strong as a lion’s. He’s already got a future in the league as a rebounder and someone who can finish around the rim. If he can turn that iffy 3-point shot into a reliable mid-range jumper, Gallon will be a starter some day.

But already people are jumping off the ship.

Be happy with the depth Milwaukee possesses. Love that they can allow their three rookies to develop at their own pace. We don’t know much about Darington Hobson yet, but we know that Larry Sanders will contribute something in 2010. Bask in that. Enjoy that Brandon Jennings has tossed your memory of Joe Alexander up high in the air for Larry Sanders to slam dunk out of your head. Then hope that Tiny Gallon comes around in a year or two.

And remember the start of the Michael Redd Era. Remember what he once was, how he was a model of hard work and grit. Remember that Redd’s glory years are what you’re looking for in every one of their second-round picks from here on out. But don’t forget, even Michael Redd didn’t see the floor much in his rookie year.

Remember that and have patience.

Bucksketball.com is a Milwaukee Bucks blog written by Jeremy Schmidt

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And after his first game, Jackson seemed like he was heading for a bright week. He scored 17 points, grabbed seven rebounds and looked like Milwaukee’s most polished player. Yet still, as good as Jackson looked, he was still low man on the totem pole that’s become the Bucks power forward situation. He was the most likely to move, and moved he will be in the coming days … for another power forward?

What’s interesting about the Bucks upcoming acquisition of Jon Brockman is that they are getting a player more talented than Jackson and with more of a rotation player ceiling. Brockman could step in and give the Bucks a solid rebounding, hustling power forward for 15 minutes-per-game starting tomorrow if need be. He’s without question better than Darnell Jackson.

And that only leaves things more complicated today than they were yesterday when it comes to the Bucks big man rotation. But not necessarily in a bad way. The depth the Bucks have merely gives them a variety of options for the time being. I’ll go through each of the Bucks options at power forward and attempt to make their probable role a bit more clear.

The mainstay: Drew Gooden
Gooden has the inside track to start opening night for the Bucks. If anything, the versatility Larry Sanders displayed throughout summer league, may have cemented this even further. Sanders often lined up at center for the Bucks in Vegas, giving some legs to the idea that both he and Gooden could split backup center minutes for the Bucks. If Sanders shows he can capably backup Andrew Bogut, as well as play next to him, it probably makes it that much easier for the Bucks to start Gooden.

In addition, Gooden’s contract will likely give him the right to fail his way out of the starting lineup and it also leaves him as the most secure Milwaukee Bucks power forward by default; he cannot be traded until December 15th of next season since he signed a new contract this off season.

The new prospect: Larry Sanders
Heading into Vegas, most weren’t sure if Sanders would have a shot at playing time this season. With an already crowded and young power forward situation, it seemed like Sanders may spend a year largely riding the pine getting adjusted to the speed and strength of pro basketball. But Sanders performed very well in summer league and may have surpassed Ersan Ilyasova as the Bucks most coveted young big. As shocking as his court awareness was on defense, it was the shooting touch Sanders displayed on occasion that was one of the biggest surprises last week in Vegas.

If he can knock down shots with some consistency in training camp and early season games, Sanders could be in line for big minutes. He’ll earn some time on his shot-blocking and rebounding alone. His defense and athleticism were his strengths coming out, but few players that have his athletic gifts are so in control of themselves and able to use them so to their advantage the way Sanders did in summer league.

The old prospect: Ersan Ilyasova
Excitement over Larry Sanders has, to a degree, left Ilyasova a forgotten man. Of all the Bucks bigs, he’s the only one who’s shown a consistent 3-point stroke in the NBA, and that’s something that the Bucks think he’ll improve on going forward. Ersan’s hustle game and rebounding ability do have their limitations though. He’ll never be the athlete that Larry Sanders is and while he gives great effort on defense, he has to rely heavily on getting to the right positions and drawing charges. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but it makes it difficult for him to stand up to the best power forwards. It’s hard to guard Chris Bosh and Amar’e Stoudamire simply by drawing a charge or giving good effort.

Ilyasova is still an intriguing enough prospect that it might make him the most likely Bucks player to be moved. If the Bucks are dangling the contract of Michael Redd in order to get back what they consider a final piece, Ilyasova is the type of player any team will want back in order to sweeten the deal. If the Bucks think that Larry Sanders is their power forward of the future, they likely won’t have much hesitation in including Ilyasova in a deal that they think makes them better.

The swiss army knife: Luc Richard Mbah a Moute
The versatility of Mbah a Moute (LRMAM) will never have done him as well as it could this year. It’ll be tough for LRMAM to see a lot of minutes at the four. If the Bucks want to go small, he could still see a few minutes here and there next to Sanders, Gooden or Bogut at the four, but the sheer options and his size limitations would seem to limit his playing time up front. Offensively, LRMAM is without question more effective finishing easy plays inside than he is shooting 15-20 foot jump shots on the perimeter, but I’m sure that’s not news to LRMAM.

It’s likely the Bucks informed him before this off season that they’d be looking to address the power forward position. Hopefully with that in mind, Mbah a Moute has been working on his perimeter skills, as some room could still be open for him at the three. Everyone knows LRMAM is going to be out there mainly for his defense and with this added depth, they’ll be able to deploy their stopper with lineups that mesh well with his offensive limitations. His ability to guard any position on the floor makes it easy to envision their being 15-20 minutes-per-game available for him next season, one way or the other.

The hustler and The project: Jon Brockman and Tiny Gallon
If the Bucks enter the regular season with their roster looking like it currently does, it’s difficult to envision much time for either of these two. Both will be eligible for the D-League, though I wouldn’t bet on Brockman going down to work on his game. He’s already an NBA rebounder and he probably won’t be launching jumpers any time soon. Brockman could just work his way into Scott Skiles rotation as so many undersized hard working forwards have done before him. Adrian Griffin? Malik Allen? Those guys were no more talented than Brockman. Skiles will make sure none of his guys are taking anything for granted.

Gallon could use the work on his game at the lower level. He could get a better feel for the NBA 3-point line and work on limiting the turnovers that haunted him this summer. Gallon was forcing things a bit in Vegas, but did show tremendous potential as a rebounder. At 19-years-old, Gallon has loads of time on his side. A year in the D-League  or, if the Bucks so choose, on the end of the bench, wouldn’t do him much harm.

Jeremy Schmidt writes the Milwaukee Bucks blog Bucksketball.com

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For assistant coach Kelvin Sampson, it’s keeping them on an even keel that’s most important.

“Rookie years are tough for these guys,” said Coach Sampson. “At some point they’re going to to go through a tough patch. With the kids here, it’s making sure they handle success and failure in the same vein. Don’t get too high, don’t get too low. Understand work is the answer to most of your problems.”

The development of young players is a crucial ingredient in the success of any NBA team and Milwaukee has one of the best in the business on their staff in Sampson. Within the last week, Gallon has Tweeted about the immediate positive influence Sampson has had on him. Gallon’s words should come as no surprise as repeatedly last season Brandon Jennings was quick to note how helpful Coach Sampson was in helping him develop. Keeping Jennings on an even keel during a roller coaster rookie season was a focus for Sampson.

“That was a big thing with Brandon,” he said. “The night he scored 55, I remember he was texting me later that night, and one of the things I said to him was don’t allow a 55-point night on a night in November define who you are. That’s part of being able to handle success.”

It should come as no surprise that Sampson has such a strong connection with younger players. A former big time college coach, Sampson had over 25 years of college coaching experience before joining the Bucks as an assistant two seasons ago. Even in the NBA, Sampson gets the most joy out of helping along the younger players.

“I have a great relationship with Andrew Bogut, Kurt Thomas and John Salmons,” Sampson said. “But those kids may need me more. When Kurt has a great game or bad game, I don’t worry about him. But Brandon, Tiny, Larry Sanders, those kind of guys, you take them under your wing a little bit.”

“I’m here for them,” Sampson said when asked what the key was to his working with younger players. “When you’re coaching a basketball team, you’re making sure that you’re available for anything. If they need to vent or need to go in at night and work or watch film, that’s the answer to our problem. If we go in at 11 at night, floor needs to be swept? I don’t mind sweeping the floor. I’ve swept floors before, that doesn’t bother me. It’s just helping them. As a coach, you get most of your satisfaction from just helping somebody along the way.”

As important as being a teacher to rookies and second year players is to Sampson, he’s also not above learning himself. Sampson has worked with big name coaches like Jud Heathcote, George Karl and Gregg Popovich, but hasn’t butted heads with Scott Skiles since arriving in Milwaukee.

“Scott is probably one of the most fair coaches I’ve been around in terms of he doesn’t show favoritism,” said Sampson. “He treats Andrew Bogut, Brandon Jennings the same he does Carlos Delfino or whoever. And I try and prepare the guys for that, how demanding he’ll be, but that if you do your work, you’ll be treated fairly.”

The success Sampson has had in preparing players may soon take him out of Milwaukee. Rumored to be a candidate for a number of open jobs over the past off-season, Sampson’s quick rise from tarnished college coach to NBA head coach could be complete by next summer. Milwaukee has already seen one Scott Skiles assistant (Lionel Hollins, Grizzlies head coach) get work elsewhere and could soon lose assistant general manager Jeff Weltman too. Such is the life of a franchise that’s suddenly gone from afterthought to front and center.

But for now, the Bucks still have Sampson, the do-it-all assistant who preaches hard work and sweeps floors when needed.

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Yue’s debut with Milwaukee came quickly in the first quarter and he did not disappoint. Yue showed off sweet court awareness with a number of nice passes and converted on a difficult spin-move-and-one jumper. After his strong start to the game, Yue had little impact and dealt with some turnover issues. Yue’s 6-foot-7 size seems like it could be a help on defense, but his lack of foot speed made it difficult for him to stay in front of Miami’s guards.

Milwaukee turned the ball over a whopping 29 times in this one, with eight of those coming from Tiny Gallon. We’re a little early in Tiny’s career for him to be a reliable post up option, and he showed that time after time on Friday, barreling into defenders for offensive fouls and getting stripped in double teams numerous times. Gallon has an okay looking midrange jumper and can step out and hit a three here and there, but he’s got a ways to go before Milwaukee will be able to dump it inside to him to get two with much consistency. Gallon did rebound the ball well once again, grabbing nine boards and he does it in a pleasing way. Gallon grabs rebounds with two hands and holds the ball high. With his monsterous paws, it’s rare he loses a rebound in traffic.

Larry Sanders struggled from the field again, shooting 5-14, but he blocked a summer league personal best five shots and grabbed eight rebounds. Sanders motor and athleticism are the kinds of skills that will translate from summer league to the regular season, not true of all skills on display in summer. The form on his jumper suggests that it may become more consistent in time, but I don’t think we’ll see a lot of that from him come October. But the rebounding and defense he’s been providing all week, that should shine through as long as he’s getting consistent minutes upon the start of the regular season.

Micah Downs has shown some sneaky athleticism all week, but it was his shooting touch that was on display Friday. He connected on 5-7 from three, including one that left him sitting in a seat courtside. Downs probably won’t have much of a chance with the Bucks, but I wouldn’t rule out him getting a camp invite somewhere and maybe earning a D-League call up at some point. He’s obviously got some skills.

After earning his first start, Dominic James showed his ability to get by his man with a number of penetrations into the lane. Unfortunately, James often was unable to reel himself in and turned the ball over a couple times trying to force passes inside once he beat his man. James tallied six assists, the highest number of any Buck this summer league, but his lack of confidence in his perimeter shot showed once when he refused to take an open look from the corner. That’s the shot he’ll need if he wants to stick eventually.

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When the Bucks spent three draft picks on forwards and loaded their summer league roster up with undrafted free agents and D-Leaguers at point guard and shooting guard, everyone knew there would be some struggles handling the ball.

The struggles were on display again Thursday night. Milwaukee turned the ball over 17 times while tallying just 12 assists. Combine the sloppiness with the ball with a general inaccuracy from the field, evidenced by 40% shooting, and that’s how the result comes to be Atlanta 83 – Milwaukee 60.

Milwaukee point guards shot a combined 4-10 with seven assists and four turnovers.

As usual, there were bright spots. And as usual, the brightest bright spot was Larry Sanders.

After wowing with his 9-14 shooting effort on Wednesday, Sanders was a more, shall we say, realistic with how he scored his 8 points Thursday. Sanders finished 4-11 from the field and did not have the same touch on his jumper. Sanders didn’t bust out the jumper as often as he had been doing Wednesday and struggled at times finishing around the rim. Given his lack of general girth, it’s feasible that this could be a problem for him initially.

But Sanders rebounding and defense were as good as ever. His 13 rebounds represent a personal summer league high and give him at least seven rebounds in every summer league game. A line with three blocks and four steals always looks nice too. Sanders obviously has a bright future with regard to his shot-blocking and rebounding, but it’s fun to see him use his length to poke away passes from behind in the post. He could combine that skill with his quickness to really tally up the steals.

The only blotches on Sanders Thursday resume were his seven fouls and three turnovers.

• Tiny Gallon saw his first start of the summer, putting up nine points, five rebounds. Interestingly enough, each of his rebounds was offensive. Gallon was getting plenty of looks in the post early and started a very strong 4-6 from the field. After that Gallon didn’t get many good looks, relying mainly on tips around the hoop.

• Sean Williams hit a number of nice looking mid-range jumpers, finishing 4-7 from the field for 10 points. Williams athleticism and skill are evident and he’s been very vocal in his support of his teammates. Attitude, immaturity and unreliability have always been the Sean Williams bugaboos (and that bizarre situation when he wanted to play small forward), but I haven’t seen any of that in Vegas.

• Deron Washington was good again, scoring 15 points on 6-10 shooting. He didn’t hit a three for the first time this week, but he did have a number of nice moves to the basket.

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(UPDATE: My piece from the ESPN Daily Dime on Larry Sanders)

I’m kind of liking the summer league thing. Exciting games that have me on the edge of my seat but don’t leave me feeling heartbroken when they don’t end the way I desire?

That sounds good to me.

Another day, another exciting finish that doesn’t really matter.

Milwaukee dropped their second straight Vegas Summer League game 67-64 to the Memphis Grizzlies after an exciting finish that saw Larry Sanders connect on two threes in the final 35 seconds of the game to tie it up with .7 second left for Milwaukee. Unfortunately, Sam Young of the Grizzlies finish the Bucks off with a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Videos would later reveal that the shot would not have counted were this the regular season, but we have more important things to discuss.

Like the aforementioned Sanders. My thoughts on him will be out later, so we’ll hold off there for now, just know that I’ve never seen a player do a complete 180 the way the Bucks first round pick did Tuesday night. Even better was the fact that Sanders big day came against a Grizzlies front line that featured Hasheem Thabeet and Darrell Arthur. They aren’t summer league fodder.

But there were other success stories Tuesday night.

• Tiny Gallon showed off the rebounding skill that he displayed with such ferocity at Oklahoma, grabbing 11 rebounds in 21 minutes. Gallon is certainly not afraid to use his weight to his advantage, whether it be when he’s boxing out or sealing off a defender for position. Unfortunately the weight can come bak to haunt him, as it seemed to when he looked winded in the third quarter. Gallon finished strong, grabbing four rebounds and scoring four points in the fourth quarter. Could his strong day two effort have anything to do with the pep talk he had with Glen Davis after a sub par first game? I talked to Gallon about it post game.

“Me and him are real good friends,” said Gallon. “I’ve known him since I was young. He was tellin’ me to play hard, this is a business. He said ‘you got to take it more seriously, when you get your chance you got to play hard.’”

Despite an overall strong game from Gallon, he seemed to struggle with his focus at times. When things weren’t going right for him he was vocal with his displeasure, be it towards the refs or his teammates. A possible attitude problem and his weight were what concerned teams before the draft. After coming out in the third quarter, Gallon came back with a renewed focus in the final quarter.

• In a turn of events that’s possibly more surprising than Sanders’ late three point barrage, Deron Washington has looked like JR Smith, without the crazy and bad shot-selection, so far in Vegas. Washington, a career 29.9% 3-point shooter in 49 D-League games, has now gone 6-9 from deep in two games this week. Most of the heavy lifting was done Tuesday night when Washington finished 5-7 from three. Washington finished with 16 points and 6 rebounds while continuing to fly around the court and be aggressive in using his athleticism. Hence the 8 personal fouls he racked up. Washington had this to say about his shooting prowess:

“It’s not one of my strengths, but it’s always been there,” said Washington after the game. “I just never really shot the ball much at (Virginia) Tech. Out here, you just trying to showcase your talent.”

• Darnell Jackson struggled to build on Monday’s strong summer league start for him, putting up just 2 points and failing to grab a rebound on Tuesday. He saw fewer minutes, as the Bucks bumped up Gallon’s. Jackson attempted just three shots and picked up five fouls. One thing evident about Jackson in the past two games is his physicality. A lot of guys in the NBA are big, but I haven’t seen a Buck in a long time that went looking for contact as often as Jackson. If he played 82 games, he’d surely lead the Bucks in “amount of times tied up with an opposing player before a ref makes them separate as they raise their hands and claim it’s the other holding them.”

Injury Report

• Sanders said his wrist was sore after the game but said “he can always fight through sore, because it’s jut a mental thing.” He played with a wrap on it … and maybe he should go ahead and just keep doing that.

• Sean Williams left after just five minutes with an ankle injury. He was walking after the game with an ice bag on his ankle and will likely get looked at tomorrow.

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