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You can say what you want about the Milwaukee Bucks, but one thing's for certain -- this team, once again, is a potential Eastern Conference championship team. It's frustrating when you have to say the same thing over and over again for such a promising franchise. "They're going to win the East!," or, "Just give the team another year, and Giannis is going to get that ring!"
It's a never-ending saga of the Milwaukee Bucks presenting themselves with such an amazing regular season record, only to fold during the post-season.
However, this year's roster looks much different as opposed to recent years. With the addition of Jrue Holiday running point, it has taken a load off Giannis Antetokounmpo's hands. Giannis also seems to be finding his spots on the floor more fluidly on the offensive side of the ball.
Aside from Giannis and Holiday, the Milwaukee Bucks have a lot more features on the roster that make this team a complete Eastern Conference Championship team. Let's take a look into this roster and evaluate some of Bucks' key players.
Jrue Holiday -- (A +)
Jrue Holiday was recently ruled out due to COVID protocols, as he produced a positive COVID-19 test. He was a late scratch for the Milwaukee Bucks game on Monday against the Nuggets, and speculation grew as to why in relation to COVID-19.
Holiday has acclimated well for this Milwaukee Bucks team that was in need of a reliable floor general. The former Pelicans guard is averaging 16.4 points and 5.4 assists for the season.
The point guard's numbers in recent games have been very productive as of late. In games played from Jan. 29 to Feb. 1, Holiday scored 20+ points in the team's 3 consecutive games in that span. He scored 22 points for Portland on Feb. 1, shooting 10-of-14 from the field and going 2-3 from beyond the arc.
In his last game, when the Milwaukee Bucks won 124-99 against the Cavaliers, Holiday sparked fire for the team by scoring 20 points with 8 assists. Alongside that, the team effort win saw Khris Middleton pitch in with 20 points and Giannis leading the team with 24 points.
Expect the team's chemistry to really solidify on the floor when Holiday comes back into the lineup.
Giannis Antetokounmpo -- (A+)
There's nothing much to say in for Giannis Antetokounmpo, as fans know what's expected from the 2x MVP.
Giannis started the season a tad slow from the perspective of lower rebounding averages and lesser shooting percentages. However, no one would notice unless they were looking deeply into analytics, as his highlight reel plays overshadow the numbers.
The former 2020 Defensive Player of the Year led the Milwaukee Bucks in their recent win over the Nuggets, dropping 30 points on and coming down with 9 boards. Giannis also continues to lead his team in points, 27.3, and 11.1 rebounds. If healthy, Giannis isn't slowing down anytime soon, and one can expect an even more evolved Milwaukee Bucks team if Holiday, Giannis, and Khris continue to feed off each other.
Khris Middleton -- (B +)
Khris Middleton came up big in the absence of Jrue Holiday during the team's match against the Nuggets. The 2x NBA All Star scored 29 points on 9-of-16 shooting with 12 assists and was amazing in his outing for the Milwaukee Bucks, earning a career high in assists.
However, with Holiday's absence, Middleton will see increased minutes on the floor. How he will fare in the absence of Holiday all comes down to Middleton's play-making ability to hit open shots on the floor. He showed an abysmal 0-of-5 from 3 point range and will need to redeem himself come the next game with increased minutes.
Middleton is averaging 20.8 points, 6.0 assists and 6.1 rebounds for the Milwaukee Bucks this season. He serves as the team's second leading scorer, and will need to play like that in the wake of Holiday's COVID-19 absnece.
Brook Lopez -- (C+)
It's plausible to say Brook Lopez has somewhat fit into the starting line-up. The Milwaukee Bucks center scored 13 points in the Nuggets game as he played well, defensively. He's averaging 10.7 points and 5.1 rebounds for the season.
Lopez's game has always been predicated on shooting from the perimeter and clogging the lane on the defensive end. But what's been the biggest issue for Lopez has been his receptiveness to coach Mike Budenholzer's additional needs for him: being more involved on the floor and less on the perimeter.
Lopez has shown improvement but really needs to progress within his starting role for the Milwaukee Bucks moving forward.
Donte DiVincenzo -- (C -)
Last but not least, Donte DiVincenzo. Not sure where to start for the Milwaukee Bucks guard, other than the fact that he, also, must step up in Jrue Holiday's absence. The 3rd year guard has utilized his minutes well, but it's to a degree. In his first 10 games of the season, Donte was averaging 11.2 points on 45.2% shooting and 47.1% from the three.
Fast forward to now, and Donte's numbers have slightly edged up since then. He is now averaging 9.7 points on 42.2% shooting and 41.1% from three. Now, these are numbers that should place his starting role in jeopardy, but moreso, these are numbers that Budenholzer needs to keep tabs on.
As the Milwaukee Bucks are bound to progress and move forward into the post-season, they're going to need Donte to step up. Regular season skids can be passed up, but this would be unacceptable come playoff time.
In the meantime, let's see how these Bucks progress as they await the return of starting guard Jrue Holiday.
