Saturday Bucks Notes

by Frank Madden on Dec 8, 2007 12:54 PM CST in Recaps Comment 1 comment

A missed opportunity last night as the Bucks dropped a 101-95 decision to the Sonics (recap / video). Kevin Durant struggled early but turned it on in the fourth to score 18 of his season-high matching 35, offsetting 41 from Mike Redd.
- The Bucks were outrebounded 49-42 but got plenty of second chances with 17 offensive rebounds that they didn't take enough advantage of. The Sonics though were +12 in free throw makes, including 15/16 from Durant.
- You can't say the Bucks didn't try to get Andrew Bogut involved. I'm not sure the last time the Bucks went to the post so much, as Bogut got a ton of looks there and even Yi had a number of post opportunities. Bogut started off very well but in the second half the Sonics (particularly Collison) got him further from the hoop and he wasn't nearly as effective, finishing with 13 on just 6/16 fg. Still the offense in general didn't look as forced and it was refreshing to see so many guys getting looks, even with Redd getting his shots.
- Bobby Simmons missed the game due to personal reasons, opening the door for 35 minutes from Desmond Mason. I didn't even think his defense on Durant was that bad, especially late when Durant was just sticking jumpers right in his face. But there were also a number of plays where Durant's explosiveness seemed to catch the entire Bucks defense off-guard. He's going to be ridiculously good next year. As for Mason, defenses are crowding him on that push jump hook shot he had success with early in the year and it's gone from a novelty shot to one you wish you saw less of.
- It's kind of frustrating to see the Bucks make a concerted effort to post Mason when everyone else on the floor is more offensively talented. Generally there's just very little room for him to find a niche with the starters considering a) he's more of an open court player, and the Bucks don't run and b) Mo Williams doesn't throw lobs. As poor as Simmons has been defensively, the fact that he can hit an open three makes me feel like it's about time to see if he's a better option with the starting five.
Check out JS recaps from Tom Enlund and Charles Gardner.
Bucks.com has been featuring more audio and video this year, and now they've got a podcast, too. Click here to add it as an RSS feed.
Jim Paschke reflects on possibly his last trip to Seattle (as an NBA city at least).
Surprising no one, the Bucks aren't interested in bringing an expansion D-League team to Milwaukee. I'm not exactly sure what the economics of a D-League team are, but it's certainly understandable that there would be very little interest in the NBDL. The Bucks have trouble enough drawing fans and there's already plenty of winter sports in Milwaukee with the Bucks, Marquette, UWM and the Admirals.
Ty at Bucks Diary offers a running diary and recaps the Sonics game.

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Comments

Desmond Mason

I know Bobby Simmons was out for personal reasons. However, watching Desmond Mason play 35 minutes is contributing to an ulcer. He is an adequate defender, but he is a nightmare offensively. He isn't fast for the 3 and isn't tall for the 3 (6'5"). Additionally, he is a black hole - he averages 1.7 assists this year and 1.6 on his career. At his position, he is #30 in the league in assists. Given Mo Williams is arguably a "shoot first" point guard, all 5 players on the floor need to be capable of scoring offense. Finally, he is an absolute non-factor from the perimeter. For a guy who is not a premier slasher, it seems like he doesn't bring much to the table.

by jweirnelson on Dec 9, 2007 12:57 AM CST reply actions 0 recs