What's Working, What's Not - Nov. 7 2010
by Dan Sinclair on Nov 7, 2010 1:40 PM CST
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PrintWell, this sucks.
7 games in, Milwaukee probably didn't expect to be three games under .500 and sitting near the bottom of the standings in their division and conference. They probably didn't expect to be clocking in as one of the worst teams in the NBA by a host of offensive measures. And they definitely didn't expect to be responsible for the lonely "1" in the Minnesota Timberwolves' win column.
So what's going on in Milwaukee? The organization made it a point to soup-up the offense last summer, and yet the Bucks' offense has been pretty horrendous. Is that the only reason for the mess in Mil-town? To get some perspective on the team as it stands, let's take a look at what the Bucks and doing well and what's holding them back. JUMP!
What's Working?
Defense, in General: Believe it or not, Milwaukee is still playing solid defense. The ultimate at-a-glance defensive statistic, Defensive Rating, has the Bucks ranked #6 in the NBA with a 98.8 DRtg, well below the league average 102.9 (lower is better). Milwaukee also ranks second in Defensive Rebound Rate, sixth in defending the three-point line, and tenth in opponent True Shooting Percentage. The Bucks, for what it's worth, are not losing games under their own basket.
Getting to the Line: Arguably the worst team in the NBA when it came to earning and making free-throws last year, the Bucks have shown visibly improvement through 7 games. Milwaukee ranks 8th in Free-Throw Rate so far and is attempting over 26 foul shots per game, compared to only 20 per game last season. The shots have been coming from a lot of different places, too: Brandon Jennings is making two more trips to the stripe per game than he did last year, while Andrew Bogut is currently eclipsing his career-high in free-throws per game. Granted, missed free throws have really hurt the Bucks already this year, but drawing fouls is never a bad thing.
What's Not?
Shooting, Shooting, Shooting: Milwaukee's shooting has, to be honest, left me speechless. Currently the third-worst shooting team in the league, the Bucks' inability to put the ball in the hoop has been simply maddening at times. According to Hoopdata.com, Milwaukee should have an eFG% of 50% given their shot distribution, if they shot just average from each spot on the floor. Instead, the Bucks have an atrocious eFG% of 44.1. This isn't a team made up of bad shooters, and yet Andrew Bogut, Earl Boykins, and Jon Brockman are the only players shooting .500 or better. A whopping eight players are missing over 60% of their shots right now, including three of the starting five. Poor shooting absolutely murders any offense; no matter how well the plays are run or what kind of mismatches are created, if the shots aren't falling, nothing matters.
Ball Movement: The Bucks' lack of go-to scorers and guys who could create their own shot has been taken to the opposite extreme so far this year. Milwaukee's assist rate has plummeted to 15.53, almost 4 points below the league average. Perhaps out of frustration; perhaps because they've already faced some staunch defenses, the Bucks are reverting to isolation plays, reckless drives to the basket, and contested long jumpers far more often than they should be. Again, when players are struggling to make shots, the whole offensive rhythm is thrown out of whack, but that's no excuse for settling for bad shots.
To be sure, this is a team built on defense, and that defense is already establishing itself as one of the best in the league. Still, if the offense can't take advantage of the opportunities it creates, the Bucks are flat-out not going to win basketball games. Milwaukee's coaching staff needs to figure out a way to snap the players out of this offensive funk, and they need to do it soon. Whether this means a different approach in practice or a change in offensive strategy, something absolutely needs to change. It's a long season, certainly, but for a team that finally earned high pre-season expectations this year, the current state of things just isn't going to cut it.
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Are the Knicks our cure for our offensive woes?
Not counting on it.
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
I think that Brandon's extra two frees per game
Are as much to do with the new technical rule (which is really making games less fun) as an increase in his aggressiveness. Jennings seems to be our designated shooter on technical free throws.
Not so far
Just went through the box scores and the only opponent technicals I saw were on Andre Miller and KG (which was a double tech that didn’t result in a FT). I don’t have the numbers on defensive three second calls, but I imagine there are many more of those called than regular technicals for arguing.
Completely agree with the ball movement description
Our players are shooting in more uncomfortable positions. Last season the ball went around the perimeter, from there to paint, back to the perimeter if necessary, until finally found the better placed shooter. This is not happening now.
That maybe the main reason of our poor shooting
It's like defenses know that we can't break them down
Teams don’t really collapse on us, so it doesn’t seem like we get nearly as many open looks. Really frustrating how Paul could create an open look off every P&R while we couldn’t do anything.
No superstar?
After watching last night’s game, and what Chris Paul did, are we lacking a true superstar? Look back at past NBA champions; the only team I can think of who did not have a superstar, was Detroit. and you can make the argument that Chauncy Billups turned into one.
This not a panic post – just dawned on me last night.
Definitely not winning a title with this core
You definitely need a superstar in today’s game to win a title IMO, and I don’t see anybody on this roster who will ever get there.
I'll just try to enjoy the ride...
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 7, 2010 8:58 PM CST up reply actions
How
about the Bucks sign Chauncey Billups?
…
…
…
Nah…couldn’t happen…right?
Wisconsin, proudly throwing the Big Ten into chaos since the beginning of time.
by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Nov 8, 2010 6:40 PM CST up reply actions
Chauncy's Retiring In Denver
And we would have to sign him in 2012. There’s no way Denver is so desperate to get under the cap that they would drop the best point that they have ever had, especially a local boy.
by MadTown Hoops on Nov 8, 2010 7:03 PM CST up reply actions
Less than a Title still a positive
I’m in the same boat as Frank, I don’t think a team can win without an offensive star nowadays. That’s what scared me so much about the contracts we signed this year – I’m afraid they’re gonna leave the team stagnant. Still, we do have a big expiring contract and a pretty deep rotation of young players to potentially turn into an elite player, draft picks, or somebody with big upside. Let’s hope the front office can swing something like that.
As much as I don’t like thinking that the Bucks’ current incarnation isn’t capable of winning a championship, they’re totally capable of putting together a solid playoff series or two. That’s a huge boost for the team and fanbase, and plenty to get excited about.
Think I can make a career out of this...?
Jennings has full capability to be an offensive superstar
I believe Jennings has the capability to be a superstar, but he will be of the Iverson type, not the Steve Nash type. I hate that he’s trying to prove to everybody he’s not what he is, cuz he’s just not a great facilitator. He has to come to grips with the fact that he’s a scorer and ball handler which is ok too, Iverson took his team to the finals too.
I agree...
The sooner Jennings embraces his role as a scorer, and not a distributor, the better for this team. Granted, his FG% is horrendous, but this team relies on his movements and streaky shooting. You just hope his shot selection and percentage at the rim continues to improve.
Dangerous
I agree that Jennings hasn’t yet reached his full potential, but realize that what you’re suggesting is that our offense should revolve around a guy who is still shooting under 40%. Iverson was a great scorer, sure, but he wasn’t efficient and absolutely had to have the ball to work. Right now, there are too many players in Milwaukee getting paid too much to justify reducing their role on offense and letting Jennings chuck.
Think I can make a career out of this...?
I don't understand this...
Why is it that a quick and good ball handler like Jennings cannot create for others and put up big assist numbers? I have a hard time imagining that Jennings can turn into Iverson, and I’m not sure that is such a good thing. I think the Bucks would be far better off with a prototypical point guard like Nash, Rondo, Paul, Billups, or Kidd. I love Jennings, I just want him to be a point guard.
Wanting vs. Getting
Wanting Jennings to be something he’s not is the reason his confidence is waivering now. He’s a scorer. Every interview, prior teammate, or highlight he’s had has revolved around his scoring. Iverson wasn’t a PG, he didn’t get many assists because of it. Jennings is a PG, and if he starts scoring, his assist numbers will go up too. Therefore I think his 10 assist per game goal is BS and hurting his game. I rather hear him say I want to shoot 40-45% from the field or something like that. He’ll find his assist numbers increasing if he does. Just my opinion tho.
Rondo:Rondo only Rondo with KG, Pierce, Shaq, Allen, etc by his side IMO. Quite honestly, Nate Robinson would avg 10 assist per game in Boston. Rondo’s mastered his role in Boston, but I won’t call him the best PG in the league, he’s the best at being what his teams needs him to be.
Every other great PG, CP3, Nash, Kidd, DWill, Billups are great because they are great scorers. Because they are great scorers, defenses respect them and require double teams etc, which leaves guys open. If they were looking to pass first, they would be ineffective. Thus, they all will avg at or above 20ppg. When you do that, other guys will find themselves open.
My issue with Jennings the scorer...
Is that he’s one of the least efficient scorers in all of basketball…I just don’t know how to reconcile that with everything else. I can understand the sentiment that he’s not the pure PG type, and he clearly has scoring instincts and pedigree. But at some point he has to be less than terrible at scoring points….and I really don’t want to go into next year asking the same questions.
I'd bet
Jennings efficiency as a scorer will increase with him being more decisive. If you don’t know what you want to do with the ball, then you’re bound to take an out of rhythm shot.
would like to see...
jennings pass to Bogut more on the P’n’R, even if it doesnt always lead to something. I’ve been seeing plenty of Bogut picks, but Jennings seems more content either settling for jumpers, driving the lane and/or trying to score or dribbling around in circles.
The poor shooting leads to so many problems. Bogut recieves in the post, they double, he passes out, we shoot, we miss on many various occasions. Oppossing will respect the Bogut double, but if we keep missing open jumpers like this they may as well play a zone defence.
On a side note, we also had quite a bit of success in going to Bogut in the post late in the 4th ( i can remember on various occasions where his timely righty/lefty hooks brought us within striking distance), would like to see more of that. It’s almost as if he’s becoming invisible or is it being frozen out?
Opponents taking away Bogut
Teams aren’t showing hard against Jennings when he runs the P&R with Bogut because they’re willing to let him shoot. They’re gonna keep cutting off his passes to Bogut until he proves he can make the shots they give him. The other problem is Jennings still doesn’t use screens that well; he takes really wide runs around them and gives his defender a lot of space to stay in front of him. The screens Milwaukee runs for Jennings seem like they’re more designed to get him jumpers, but he needs to use them to drive more often.
Think I can make a career out of this...?
Sidenote
The Dampier Houston signing fell apart. It’s apparent that our bigs just aren’t big enough after Bogut.
He doesn't seem like a player that you'd want to have
It’s become increasingly apparent that his search for suitors was more about missing training camp than finding the right team. Also, he wants to join a ready made contender. It doesn’t seem like he would contribute in any way that would match his salary.
by MadTown Hoops on Nov 9, 2010 3:50 PM CST up reply actions
2-5 isnt the greatest start for sure......but im confident once we get an offensive groove....if we get it....we will start getting where we should be
sucks at the moment but we didnt start all that great last year
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
“This is the worst I’ve played in my career, by far,” said Gooden, who is in his ninth pro season. "No question, on any level of basketball.
“I’m frustrated. It’s just going to take a couple shots or a couple possessions to get me going. I’m just patiently waiting to see what’s going to happen.”
Gooden, who signed a five-year, $32 million contract with the Bucks during the off-season, also played only 13 minutes against Charlotte and 18 minutes against Boston and was in foul trouble in both games.
“I don’t want to take away from being aggressive out there because that’s one thing I do is play aggressive,” Gooden said. "That’s something that has been a concern for me is staying out of foul trouble, and after that, just playing my game.
“I’ve just got to get back to that.”
If Drew Gooden says it’s the worst he’s played in his career, you know somethin’ is goin down
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
I meant to blockquote all of that
And link to this: http://www.jsonline.com/sports/bucks/106861603.html
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 12:07 PM CST up reply actions
im even confident abysmal Gooden will be back to his old mediocre self very soon
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
with Bogut coming back from his injury and the completely disjointed pre season and all the new additions
it would have been incredible if we came out like a well oiled machine……..obviously we have sucked, but the main thing is for the guys to find their sea legs and Bogut just getting back on the court and being decent is a positive………I expect us to start really improving after a few more weeks
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
it would have been better not to lose to 'Sota but whats done is done
Kahn 1 BJ’s 0
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
It's all because of you that we're their only win
Bad karma ;)
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 12:14 PM CST up reply actions
I take full responsibilty since I lead the Kahn ridiculing here.....its on me
I still cant sleep at night
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
Long season
I’m sure we’ve had 2-5 stretches before.
"But we all know that games aren't played on paper...they are played by little men inside our TV sets." --Kenny Mayne
by dishingoutdimes on Nov 8, 2010 12:22 PM CST reply actions
yeah would have been nice if our play hadnt been so disjointed......we got a decent glimpse against the C's of what we should be capable of
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
true...if we get to 20-50 then Ill start the ranting ;)
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
Bogut is attempting 12 fg per game...
I’ve said since he was a rookie that the Bucks haven’t fully utilized his talents – and I still feel that way.
I know he’s not Kareem and that teams double him and then he passes – but 12 fga is not enough, IMO.
yeah good point Victor...he has always been unselfish...or not assertive enough in that area.....I suppose it helps that he can pass well
but I have always wanted to take more responsibility on offense, whether that’s more his laid back nature or the way the Bucks have used him, definitely under Skiles they have looked a bit more to establish him early in the game but it doesnt consistently go that way during the whole game………
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
Good news everyone!
Our offensive efficiency is .1 ahead of Minnesota!
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
LOVE THIS BLOG
Hey Dudes, I’ve been reading brewhoop religiously (lunch hour daily) for 4 yrs now and I can’t say enough about everyone who contributes, I’ve just been too lazy until now to set up an accnt. And it’s only because I’m starting to get a little concerned. I moved to AZ from Wisco (greatest state in the union) about 8 yrs ago and have never been this excited about a bucks season since we signed Anthony Mason in 01/02 to “put us over the top” (oh the horror) anyway, just wanted to introduce myself and say thanks to all who make brewhoop great…………and by the way, when do we get CDR back??
I think I brained my damage! - Homer Simpson
Hey, welcome!
Always nice to have newcomers. (Just watch out for ILIKEBJS, he might eat you ;) ) And CDR should be back I’m guessing 2 or 3 weeks from now just based on what he’s said before.
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 3:01 PM CST up reply actions
hey what am I the resident grinch? :) Ive been relatively positive through this rocky start I think
knocked Drew Gooden a bit but Im still hoping he and Bogut can provide a effective 1-2 punch eventually, Salmons will be okay once he wakes up, Id like Sanders to get some more burn, I think Jennings is going to have some growing pains this year, but the whole team is sucking on a whole and I dont blame Jennings, 2nd years are always tough, Ill never be totally sold on Maggete but I see what his strengths are………..she’ll be apples in another 5-10 games we will be roaring like a mouse!!
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
Haha don't worry it's not that
I just wanted to pick someone to use :)
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 7:25 PM CST up reply actions
I can see why you would pick me though :)
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
I'm not quite sure why....
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 7:37 PM CST up reply actions
im going to follow every statement with a smiley face from now on :)
I dont like sitting on fences they are not very comfortable its either boom or bust :)
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
Much like elipses and ":P", :) are part of Brewhoop.
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 7:42 PM CST up reply actions
JUST DON'T GO ALL MARKO ON US BJ'S AND START SHOUTING LIKE THIS!!!!!
Otherwise, everything else is fine :P (except for your derrierre on that fence apparrently…)
Squad Six is to the Bucks what beer is to Milwaukee (or anywhere else for that matter)... the catalyst for you doing dumb things in public and not feeling self-conscious!
by Big Crazy Dave on Nov 9, 2010 12:40 AM CST up reply actions
duly noted.......Ive got enough ass kickings thats its irrelevant now ;)
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
not saying CDR is gonna save us
but it woulda been nice to have him in there to let Salmons work his way back into shape a little more gradually. From a field goal % standpoint I just don’t think this can last much longer and Bucks have been traditionally good against weak NY teams, little curious to see how Bogut and Amare’ greet each other.
I think I brained my damage! - Homer Simpson
I think the biggest thing
Is to give Salmons some competition. He’s not going to take his spot but him Fishy keeps playing like, well, rotten fishy, then Skiles can pull him knowing he has CDR, who I still think can be a decent player in the future.
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 3:18 PM CST up reply actions
Don't think the Bogut/Amare greeting will have much spark...
…compared to the reception the BC will give Mr Stoudemire every time he goes near the ball…
Squad Six is to the Bucks what beer is to Milwaukee (or anywhere else for that matter)... the catalyst for you doing dumb things in public and not feeling self-conscious!
by Big Crazy Dave on Nov 9, 2010 12:43 AM CST up reply actions
If the crowd could assess technicals
Amar’e would get one for walking into the Bradley center and another for stepping on the court…in warmups.
Wisconsin, proudly throwing the Big Ten into chaos since the beginning of time.
by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Nov 9, 2010 8:54 AM CST up reply actions
We're going to really suck offensively if Delfino doesn't play
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/106920473.html
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
Watch, if he's out the team will inexplicably shoot 70% and score 120
I never use a big word when a diminutive word would suffice.
I like this idea ;)
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
lulz with our luck I can see it
But the thing about Delfino is that I’m not sure if there’s another good passer on this team besides him and Jennings.
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 7:37 PM CST up reply actions
Ty Lawson is becoming my favorite point to watch
He’s just so fast. The way he plays can only be compared to Twista, in the way that he completely changes the rhythm and tempo with his mere presence.
I'm just amazed that
As bad as the O has been, we’ve been in most games. Looking at the stats from Saturday you would think the deficit would have been more and the Bucks wouldn’t have been close. That gives me reason for optimism as you know eventually these shots are going to drop.
FTD It's not about flowers anymore.
FEAR THE DEER
Agreed
Even the worst teams don’t shoot as bad as we have been, and it’s not just the usual scapegoats. But it makes you wonder about why so many players are missing shots. I’m personally not a big fan of Skiles “drive and kick” offense, but he makes up for it on the defensive end.
"I'm not Nostradamus or anybody, so I don't know. Luckily, this is the worst injury I've had in my career so far."
- Drew Gooden, on the severity of his toe injury.
by Jacob Grinyer on Nov 8, 2010 9:59 PM CST up reply actions
Hands up (honestly now) if you thought Bogut...
…would be putting up 15pt/11.5reb/2blk per game even just 2 weeks ago? I shudder to think where we’d be if he was only playing 20mpg for 8/6/1! Even though I have been advocating these past few months that Bogut would be fine…I still had my doubts!
Squad Six is to the Bucks what beer is to Milwaukee (or anywhere else for that matter)... the catalyst for you doing dumb things in public and not feeling self-conscious!
been a pretty decent effort straight out of the sheds
been hitting them out of the middle from the first ball
That," says LeBron, "is for everyone that watches me play. They witness something special. You're all a witness.
No complaints :)
If he can stay healthy I think this team works its way out of its funk—the other guys won’t stay THIS bad. But they’re testing my patience…
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