Welcome to the Brew Hoop Night Shift. Every evening at 9:00pm (central time), this all-purpose thread goes up, and the comments section is where it’s going down. What Bucks news did we not cover? What topics do you want to break down further? Or is there something non-Bucks that you want to bounce off of one another? Even something non-basketball? This is the place.
Today’s (on)topic: Sports Illustrated on Eric Bledsoe
Eric Bledsoe – a Buck for all of a month – is fitting in just fine: https://t.co/EmhJcPWE1p pic.twitter.com/c8sRHeYfQj
— Rob Mahoney (@RobMahoney) December 12, 2017
This is a good recap of Bledsoe’s first month in Milwaukee and how that has affected the team offensively (very well) and defensively (even better). Overall the team (read: players) has been a lot less frustrating to watch given the schemes they have had to play within.
[The Bucks] are distinctly less maddening—not as prone to wide-eyed implosion, even as they sort themselves out on the fly.
There were definitely some growing pains throughout the last month, but also a lot of reasons to be thrilled with the product on the court. Two games that stick out in my mind that fall in the “less maddening” category are last week’s games against the Detroit Pistons and Dallas Mavericks.
Against Detroit, Milwaukee had a rough third quarter, but bounced back in the fourth and put the game away against a tough divisional rival. The roster knows how to win close games against above .500 teams. Against Dallas, the team started out maddening, but eventually pulled out the W. Another loss to the Mavericks would have been the textbook definition of “maddening Bucks basketball.”
That core trio has been brilliant on both sides of the ball in its first 300+ minutes, wrecking opponents by nearly 17 points per 100 possessions.
KEG! KEG! KEG! KEG! The love that Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, and Bledsoe have been receiving is more than warranted given the stat noted above. KEG stands above their opponents and dominate the action over the course of those 300 some odd minutes. KEG is love, KEG is life.
Today’s (off)topic: Workout Shoes
My three year old Nike shoes are starting to show their wear, and smell. Once the Mid-West begins to thaw out in March, I will be in the market for new workout/running shoes. I am not totally sold on going back to Nike and am open to branching out to other brands. Which brand of workout/running shoe do you utilize? Even though they will be Nike, maybe I should wait another year for Giannis’ signature shoe to drop.
As a general rule, non-basketball topics are permitted in an open thread, provided that they follow the SB Nation Community Guidelines.