PODCAST: Recapping Bucks-Pelicans

On Tuesday night, the Bucks picked up their first road victory of the season and got back to .500 with a 117-113 victory over the Pelicans. After breaking down the Bucks’ struggles thus far this season, Frank and I relished the opportunity to talk about a Bucks’ victory and talked about almost every player on the team.

I am not kidding about talking about nearly everyone on the roster. Here is what we discussed:

Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to impress. Another game, another strong showing from Antetokounmpo. On the season, he is now averaging 23.3 points, 9.5 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 2 blocks, and 1 steal per game with 51 percent shooting. In the podcast, I mentioned that one of the things I’ve been most impressed with this season is Antetokounmpo’s chameleonic ability to find a way to score and create no matter how teams are defending him or which teammates are sharing the floor with him.

#BariBreakout, sort of. After a few games of disappointing play, Jabari Parker put up 21 points against the Pelicans on 7-of-14 shooting and 7-of-7 shooting at the line. He only had two rebounds and certainly did struggle at times, but those third quarter jumpers looked good!

Threes! Glorious Threes! The Bucks shot 32 threes last night, a high during the Jason Kidd era. Tony Snell did his part taking nine threes and may find it easier to find minutes with this team if he continues to have such a quick trigger from deep.

Matthew Dellavedova and Malcolm Brogdon steady the Bucks’ lineups. Dellavedova has been solid for the Bucks this entire season by essentially filling in the cracks that the team needs on any given night. Against the Pelicans, he scored 11 points, hit two open threes, and dished out eight assists. Brogdon’s performances have been up-and-down through four games, but on Tuesday, he was able to serve as a steadying force while he was on the floor.

The Bucks’ Big Man Bullpen. Against the Pelicans, the Bucks opened the game with Miles Plumlee, Greg Monroe came in for middle relief, and John Henson served as the closer. It’s been a little strange to watch, but the Bucks have gotten into a little bit of a groove with these rotations. It will be interesting to see how long the three centers put up with playing like this and whether or not it is actually a suitable rotation for the three bigs.

Hey look! It’s Super Cool Beas. Thus far this season, Michael Beasley has caught a lot of flack from Frank and I for his poor defense and his love for contested mid-range pullup jumpers, but Beasley was good against the Pelicans and helped spark a 6-0 run in the second quarter that helped the Bucks get back into the game after some early struggles. My favorite part: he took a number of shots at the rim instead of settling for jumpers.