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Good morning once again, everyone. We come in to today’s Roundup feeling our confidences boosted a little bit, no? The Bucks ran through this last week’s four-game stretch to extend their current winning streak to six. Everyone seems to be gelling at just the right time, they’re solidly in at least one rung of the playoff ladder, and they’ve shown the capability to hang tough to finish close games (shown best by Saturday’s 102-95 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves).
The difficulty ramps up just a bit starting this evening, however, as the Bucks visit the Memphis Grizzlies. Following that, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the vaunted Golden State Warriors are on the schedule.
Before all that, we’ve got to take a breather and take in the variety of news surrounding the Bucks as reported on by the media beyond this corner of the web. This week, we’ll touch on the future of the All-Star Game, look at how the young Bucks are making a bit of history, and much more!
Let’s roundup!
How the Wolves and Bucks Reshaped Their Teams After Key Injuries (The Ringer)
This one holds relevancy given the most recent game on Milwaukee’s schedule, but The Ringer takes a whack at analyzing what it is exactly that is keeping Milwaukee and Minnesota together after a string of injury issues. Given the relative youth of both franchises and their stars, watching them adjust to adversity has been intriguing.
Whether either team makes their way to the playoffs is anyone’s guess, but the loss of star players hasn’t slowed them down yet. It isn’t just the return of Khris Middleton that is fueling success; it runs deeper than that, according to Jonathon Tjarks.
Young Bucks Tracker: Giannis doing things not seen in decades (FOX)
Part of the fun with this team is keeping track of the progress and impact the younger guys are having on the team’s success, and their growth as the season goes on. In this one, every Bucks player 25 and under goes under the microscope for a quick analysis as to the trends they’re riding, what their seasons have looked like overall, and more.
Bucks Name Steve Brandes President of Fox Valley D-League Team (Bucks.com)
The shape of Milwaukee’s future D-League team in Oshkosh is continuing to take shape, and the Bucks have chosen Steve Brandes to head the day-to-day and business operations of the team.
Brandes had an instrumental role as President and GM of the Idaho Stampede for 14 seasons, and earned plenty of experience coordinating operations with the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz. The Stampede were purchased by the Jazz and moved to Salt Lake City, and now Brandes is going to bring his talents in building an operation from the ground up to Oshkosh.
There is still a lot to be determined in Oshkosh, but having an experienced executive leading the way should mitigate the pains of starting a brand-new team at least a little.
Feigin: Bucks want to host 2020 or 2021 NBA All-Star Game (WTMJ) & Peter Feigin joins On The Rocks (ESPN)
A dual post with this one. Bucks President Peter Feigin recently joined the fine folks at ESPN Madison on their “On The Rocks” program to discuss where the team is at on a variety of subjects ranging from the season so far, the progress of the arena, and, surprisingly, their working towards a bid for a future All-Star Game.
The team is pushing the NBA to select a small-market franchise as a representative for the NBA’s marquee mid-season weekend, and the Bucks will have a near-new arena and entertainment district to offer to the league in pushing for such a bid.
Whether the bid will see success remains to be seen, but the first All-Star Game in Milwaukee since 1977 has at least a minimum amount of traction behind it at this early stage.
StaTuesday: Bucks’ Brogdon among best 3-point shooting rookies ever (FOX)
As if you needed to swoon even more about Malcolm Brogdon as we eagerly await his return from injury, just recall that Brogdon is having one of the best-shooting years for a rookie ever, much less a second-round pick.
It is always difficult to extrapolate the highs and lows of a rookie season for a hint of the future, but having a reliable shooting stroke is almost always a good sign. Where Brogdon goes the rest of the way this year (Rookie of the Year, anyone?) remains to be seen, but he’s increasingly shown himself to be a consistent contributor for a Bucks team that can use all the help it can get.
Last week, I ignominiously predicted that the Bucks would go 2-2 between Roundups. I’m more than happy to have been proven incorrect, and this week I’m going to be a bit more optimistic and predict another 2-2 record. The lineup goes as follows: @ Memphis, @ Clippers, @ Lakers, and @ Golden State. We’ll have a pretty good picture of where this team stands in relation to the playoffs and just how real this latest run of success is, either way.
Beyond that, come back and join us this evening as we give you the full slate of coverage of tonight’s game against the Grizzlies. Keep warm, remember to ensure that all your home appliances’ clocks have been sprung forward an hour, and as always:
Happy Monday!