The NBA season is long and full of highs and lows. Throughout 82 games and six months, every club experiences highs and lows that are proportional to their expectations. However, they want to keep improving and playing their best basketball before the playoffs begin in April. Unfortunately for the Bucks, their downturn comes at the worst possible time.
Milwaukee’s worst loss of the season on Tuesday night—a four-point setback to the previously 14-win Washington Wizards—was followed by another embarrassing loss on Wednesday night, this time against the woefully shorthanded Memphis Grizzlies. Milwaukee concluded the season 0-2 versus Memphis.
For a moment, it appeared that the Buckeyes had righted the ship. On March 21st and 24th, they defeated the Brooklyn Nets and the Oklahoma City Thunder, respectively. In the fourth quarter, they led by 19 points against the Los Angeles Lakers, who were without LeBron James.
They began to sink, losing four of their last five games.
Milwaukee wasted a massive lead against the Lakers, losing in double OT. They followed that with a loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. Their only win in this time came against the Atlanta Hawks, and they lost their next two games against the Wizards and Grizzlies.
Milwaukee remains second in the Eastern Conference with six games remaining, at 47-29. However, their 61.8 percent win-loss percentage would be the lowest since Jason Kidd was head coach in 2016-17.
The good news is that they are still 1.5 games clear of the Cleveland Cavaliers (who have gone 4-6 in their previous ten games) and two games ahead of the Orlando Magic (who have won three straight games).
Milwaukee has four consecutive home games coming up. This provides them another chance to fix the leaks and stop the sinking. They play the Toronto Raptors, New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, and Orlando Magic before wrapping up the season with two away games against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Magic.
That means five of their final six opponents will not only be in the playoffs, but also rank in the top five of their respective conference. If Milwaukee struggled against the Wizards and Grizzlies, their postseason schedule will feel like a challenge.
There is still time to turn things around, but it’s running out soon. Damian Lillard is nursing an ailment, while Giannis Antetokounmpo lacked his usual burst on Wednesday night, most likely owing to a sore hamstring. Who knows how much time they’ll spend on the court in the last two weeks? That’s a concern given how little time their big three of Lillard, Antetokounmpo, and Khris Middleton have received on the court this season under Doc Rivers.
It may be time to embrace the Bucks for who they are this season—a disorganized club comprised of talented guys whose sum does not exceed its parts. That’s a disheartening outcome for a team led by Lillard and Antetokounmpo, but the Bucks are running out of time to demonstrate that a different idea holds water. Currently, their ship is sinking.
