Their NBA Cup hopes dashed and owners of the league’s longest losing streak after Charlotte won last night, the Milwaukee Bucks are back at Fiserv Forum tonight to face the Brooklyn Nets, inhabiting the East’s basement. While it’s the second night of a back-to-back, and the 48-win Bucks of last season went 1-3 against a less-tanktastic version of the Nets, there’s no excuse to lose to this team, who may be without their top two scorers.
Giannis returned from a four-game absence, but as good as the Bucks played at times last night at Madison Square Garden, they were still undone by many of the same shortfalls we’ve seen this year and in Doc Rivers’ tenure: losing the possession battle due to offensive rebounding and turnover deficits. Like in other games, there were calls the Knicks got that still don’t go the other way, and it’s worth raising the alarm about that. Ultimately, however, it’s another night where Milwaukee didn’t play well enough to win, despite how much better it looked than the four games Giannis didn’t play. There isn’t really a colder team in the NBA right now, and the scheduling gods have bestowed the owners of the two worst records in the East on Milwaukee in the next three days. If they can’t take care of business in both, changes need to be made.
The Nets have just three wins and fell to the still-not-complete Sixers last night. You may recall Jordi Fernandez’s squad giving Milwaukee fits last year, but this Brooklyn roster is even more talent-depleted. Cam Thomas is still a bucket when healthy, but he hasn’t been in weeks. Trade acquisition and former NBA champion Michael Porter Jr. is carrying the offensive load with career-best numbers—his efficiency hasn’t really suffered going from a third option in Denver to the guy on this team. Third-year forward Noah Clowney has played well lately and appears to be taking a step forward. Nic Claxton is still good. That’s about where the positives end. Two of their three wins came against fellow cellar dwellers Indiana and Washington (they somehow beat Boston by 12). Only the Wizards have an appreciably worse margin of defeat than the Nets’ 10.6. They made four first-round picks in June’s draft, and three of them are glued to the bench or toiling in the G League. It’s a bad, bad team.
We’ll have to wait on the official injury report until later in the day, with both teams on a SEGABABA. Giannis will probably still be listed, perhaps questionable, so we’ll see if he plays both ends. Taurean Prince will be out, but it’s possible Kevin Porter Jr. plays, based on what Kyle Kuzma said postgame last night.
For Brooklyn, Michael Porter Jr. sat out last night with back tightness. Haywood Highsmith is still recovering from offseason knee surgery and won’t play. Neither will Cam Thomas, whose hamstring strain earlier this month ruled him out 3–4 weeks. Rookie Ben Saraf was questionable with an ankle sprain yesterday but didn’t play.
If KPJ plays, how will he reintegrate into the offense? Both he and Giannis (28 minutes last night)—if he plays at all—probably will be on minute restrictions. While Porter may come off the bench, can he slot in as another ballhandler in the backcourt next to Rollins, who probably becomes more of a secondary guy with Porter back?
FanDuel Sports Wisconsin and the following local stations at 7 p.m. CST:
WMLW & WYTU (Milwaukee)
WISC (Madison)
WMEI (Green Bay)
WECX (Eau Claire/La Crosse)
WYOW (Wausau)
WQAD (Davenport, IA, Rock Island/Moline, IL)