Last time we asked, Jon Leuer's three-point play on a drive-and-dish from Brandon Jennings against the Timberwolves was the most popular pick, beating a baseline-spin-and-dunk by Andrew Bogut. This time, Jennings is still passing and Leuer and Bogut are still finishing, though we also have surprise appearances by Larry Sanders and Drew Gooden. And while Carlos Delfino is not featured in any of these top plays, he is on the court for all of them. Continue for highlights and voting...

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The 2011 portion of the 11/12 season is now officially in the books, and with it we have our first set of highlights for the young NBA season. In what we expect will be a recurring feature, we'll collect as many of the Bucks' top plays as possible and put them to a vote every week or so. Hit the jump for video and vote below.

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We're officially one month away from the 2011 NBA Draft, so now seems like a good time to get a bearing on which direction everybody wants the team to go with the 10th pick.

The poll below offers a number of choices -- pick the player you want the Bucks to pick. We're not looking for a mock draft here, we want to know who is topping the draft board for Bucks fans.

For now, we've tried to include players who have a realistic chance of falling to Milwaukee, so unfortunately the few elite prospects in this draft might be out of the question. If the player you want isn't listed among the choices, let's hear about it in the comments! Same goes for any deals you think the Bucks should make to move up or down in the draft.

We'll tally up the poll votes, plus any others included in the comments (no cheating!), when the poll closes at midnight on Friday.

The Bucks are essentially done for this year, even if they gave the Sixers a hell of a game last night.  In my last article, I discussed how we got to where we are, what we maybe should have done, and what exactly might be next.  I offered no answers, and I can't offer any now either.  But we're better off looking forward rather than mourning the lost opportunity.

There's already an excellent FanPost up that looks at the upcoming draft and how it might impact the Bucks.  However, in a draft that's widely regarded as light on talent, I'm not going to look at that here.  Rather, let's look into 2012, a full year later and (hopefully) under a new CBA.

This ESPN article (Insider required) highlights a player that I've heard of, but never really seen.  His name is Anthony Davis, and he's a 6'10"...something...who's committed to Kentucky.

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With last night's loss to the Pacers, the Milwaukee Bucks saw the last glimmer of hope for a playoff berth fade away.  A surprising 2009-10 season, culminating in the exciting first round playoff series loss to Atlanta, propelled the Bucks from anonymity to the periphery of the national discussion.  A team built without superstar free agents or athletic specimens, the Bucks used smart offense and stingy defense to dictate the terms of the game, usually with a favorable outcome.  

That was then, and this is now.  What was supposed to be an underdog team crashing the party turned out to be an unspectacular collapse.  What happened here?

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Milwaukee is 0-9 against its three potential playoff opponents.

The "potential playoff opponents" bit is a touch absurd in itself: The Bucks would be in 13th place in the West, 10.5 games out of the playoffs. Instead, they are in 9th place, 2.0 games out of the playoffs in the East. Three cheers for the concept of conferences.

And there is a sizable minority of Bucks fans who would prefer that the team miss out on the playoffs this season anyway. The three potential playoff opponents -- Bulls and Celtics (tied for first) and the Heat (2.5 back) -- have won every matchup with the Bucks this season. So there might be about as many fans (and "fans") of those teams hoping the Bucks make the playoffs as Bucks fans. Alas, Milwaukee is halfway to its longest win streak of the season... after two wins. So:

Chicago Bulls
Why
After the Cavaliers ceded the division in the offseason, the second-place Bucks were supposed to make a legitimate push to win the Central. Instead, the Bulls clinched the crown long ago. They are winning the division by 20 games. But this could make everything right. Plus, it's Illinois/Wisconsin.
Why not
The Bucks have lost all three games to Chicago this season. The Bulls have a great defense -- even better than Milwaukee's. And so it is little surprise that the Bucks are averaging 78.3 points in their three losses to Chicago. And the "Derrick Rose MVP" chants are grandly grating.

Boston Celtics
Why
These two teams don't care for each other -- Andrew Bogut and Brandon Jennings both have histories of jawing with Kevin Garnett. And Milwaukee played one of its best losses of the year in the very first week of the season when they fell 105-102 in overtime in Boston. The team ran some sharp offensive sets, Andrew Bogut continued his fine offensive form against the Celtics, and the Bucks showed early on what they were capable of at nearly full strength. The competitive game also continued a trend of playing Boston tough going back to the previous season, when they beat the Celtics once and lost twice by a combined 11 points.
Why not
The Bucks most recently scored 56 points when they played the Celtics. Replaying that type of performance on national television for a week and a half is not advisable. And that game came just a week after losing to the Celtics at the Bradley Center, which wore a conspicuously Celtic green tint. The Bucks would have a home-court advantage at the BC in the playoffs of course, but not the type of advantage the Celtics would have in Boston. There was a time when it seemed like the Bucks always got up for the Celtics, that they matched up well with them. That time is not now.

Miami Heat
Why
The Bucks took the Heat to overtime in arguably the most exciting game at the Bradley Center this season -- and it is the only one I missed. And they managed that result sans Brandon Jennings. The Bucks were also severely depleted when they lost by 12 in Miami. While the chances are Miami will just crush it as they have the vast majority of the season, they have suffered a few cold streaks -- the Heat have lost three games in a row on three separate ocassions, which is pretty rare for an elite team.
Why not
They have lost all three games to Miami, and they would probably lose four more quickly. The Bradley Center would be the center of the basketball world for a few nights, but that might not be the best thing given the result.

With Brian Skinner tonight joining Chris Kramer among the waived, this question gets dicey, fast.

As luck has it, there are three good reasons why, lacking Kramer and Skinner, each remaining player could be your new favorite Buck... Curiously enough, they are found here:

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A couple months ago Kyle from Brew Crew Ball came up with a cool idea: a Wisconsin sports hall of fame, as voted by the readers of SBN's Wisconsin-repping blogs. Here's how it works: This week we'll nominate ten people to represent Bucks basketball. Those ten will then be placed on the final ballot alongside ten figures selected by each of these communities:

• Acme Packing Company (Packers)
• Anonymous Eagle (Warriors/Eagles/Gold)
• Brew Crew Ball (Brewers)
• Bucky's 5th Quarter (Badgers)

We'll unveil our final nominees as the month goes along, with the expected final vote for first round of inductions to happen in  August.

First, though, we need you to help select our nominees. After the jump, you'll find a ballot including 20 players from the history of the Milwaukee Bucks. In keeping with what the other sites are doing, current Bucks are not eligible (sorry, Darnell Jackson Tiny Gallon!). I'd also ask that your votes be based on what the players accomplished as Bucks, and to that end I limited the ballot to players who had played at least three seasons for the Bucks (sorry, Moses Malone). Please select up to ten candidates to appear on the final ballot. Voting will remain open until Friday, with the top ten candidates announced in the weeks to come. 

Please follow the jump to cast your vote.

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