The Milwaukee Bucks competed for much closer to 48 minutes against the Los Angeles Lakers but again couldn’t get over the line, losing 123-112. The main storyline was Taylor Jenkins’s rotational adjustments: inserting Nate Ament into the starting lineup, sending Jaime Jaquez Jr. to the bench, and removing others from the rotation entirely. All told, I’d say the returns were positive, even if they didn’t result in a win. Those adjustments will definitely be something to monitor moving forward. Read
our full summary of the game here and catch a six-minute audio recap on the Bucks+ podcast,Bucks In Six Minutes, below.
Player Grades
Ryan Rollins
23 minutes, 8 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 turnovers, 3/10 FG, 2/6 3P, -12
Rollins seems to be getting smothered more by taller, longer defenders this season than last. Just couldn’t get many good looks and was stripped/coaxed into throwing bad passes. I will say that Rollins made an impact, generating extra shots, with three of his seven rebounds being O-boards.
Grade: D+
Tyler Herro
34 minutes, 27 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 block, 3 turnovers, 8/16 FG, 2/7 3P, 9/10 FT, -17
It was great to see Herro back out there to give the team direction. Even though his three wasn’t dropping, he still made a major impact with his in-between game and at the free throw line. I also feel like guys are getting in Herro’s way a bit as he’s trying to penetrate; you know, cutting in front of him and the like.
Grade: B
Jaime Jaquez Jr.
30 minutes, 25 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 7/16 FG, 2/7 3P, 9/9 FT, -13
Jaquez was fantastic. This felt like a matchup where he finally had an advantage over the long-but-skinny Laker defenders. I also loved how Jaquez kept leading by example, especially on defence, as the game wore on. I noticed multiple times when Jaquez was bodying up his man in the backcourt—even before the ball was thrown in—and it seemed to force others to follow suit.
Grade: A-
Kyle Kuzma
23 minutes, 9 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 steals, 6 PF, 2/8 FG, 1/6 3P, 4/4 FT, -22
Look, Kuzma was tasked with guarding Doncic, and he was about the only guy who had the length and height to at least make Doncic think when he drove and shot. That said, I didn’t think he played a particularly smart defensive game, as shown by him fouling out in 23 minutes. I understand keeping Luka off the free throw line is much easier said than done, but Kuzma made several ill-advised closeouts and was way too close to Doncic as he probed and snaked pick-and-rolls, which meant the Lakers superstar could jump backwards and draw fouls with ease. On offence, it was another brickfest for Kuz, who took a heap of ill-advised threes and had no impact elsewhere.
Grade: D-
Kel’el Ware
22 minutes, 8 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 3 blocks, 1 turnover, 3/8 FG, 0/2 3P, -16
Eh, Ware was… fine? I mean, he still can’t seem to get much offence going (and he generally looks a little uncomfortable trying to score), but he did make an impact beyond the scoreboard. Funny stat: only one of his five rebounds came on the defensive glass. Plus, you take three blocks from your starting centre any day of the week. Plus, in an improvement on recent games, Ware was more a-ware of his positioning in the drop defence, and even broke up a lob in the first half.
Grade: C
Brayden Burries
23 minutes, 8 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 3/7 FG, 1/2 3P, -12
I don’t know if Burries played poorly; it was more that he looked a bit directionless. Part of me feels like he’s being asked to do things he’s not quite ready for in terms of initiating offence and handling the ball, and that’s getting him into some uncomfortable spots. Still, three offensive rebounds is very Brayden Burries.
Grade: C-
Nate Ament
22 minutes, 2 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 1/3 FG, 0/1 3P, -20
Other than his electrifying dunk in transition, Ament’s first start didn’t go great. It wasn’t like he was just shot chucking out there, but he made some really bad mistakes. First, Ament telegraphed a cross-court pass right to the Lakers defender; he also tried to take Walker Kessler one-on-one with a healthy shot clock, only to have the ball ripped away. That mentality won’t earn Ament minutes; he needs a better understanding of who he is and what he does well at this point in his career (hint: it’s not creation). Also, Ament had some atrocious possessions as an off-ball defender.
Grade: D+
Ousmane Dieng
18 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 6 PF, 3/5 FG, 2/3 3P, +13
I don’t blame Dieng for fouling out; he was the other primary Doncic defender and, unlike Kuzma, I thought his defence was about as disciplined as it could get, and he got a few rough calls. Overall, Dieng was one of the Bucks’ best; his early-season shooting struggles seem to be behind him. Solid minutes with minimal mistakes.
Grade: B
Jericho Sims
18 minutes, 0 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assists, 1 block, 0/1 FG, -5
Sims was fine. Had some decent possesions as a switch defender.
Grade: C
Taylor Jenkins
Jenkins flagged that change was coming after the Knicks loss, and he followed through. Jenkins’ major change was tinkering with the lineup to balance the first and second units. He started Ament and sent Jaquez to the bench. As was confirmed postgame (see Bonus Bucks Bits), this was no “demotion.” It felt like the starting unit could use a more complementary piece (Ament), while the second unit needed another creator (Jaquez). Now, Jaquez played well, so obviously people are going to say it “worked,” but even just conceptually, I like the idea. The other changes Jenkins made were to trim the rotation, excising Jakucionis and Green, while upping the minutes of Herro, Rollins, and Burries, which is also something fans had been calling for. Overall, we need more data, but I would say the early returns were promising.
Grade: B-
Garbage Time: AJ Green, Bogoljub Markovic, Kasparas Jakucionis, Pete Nance, Gary Trent Jr.
DNP-CD: Caris LeVert
Inactive: Kam Jones, Cormac Ryan, Myles Turner
What We Learnt
Jenkins is willing to experiment until he gets the desired result. I think there were steps taken towards that in this one.
Bonus Bucks Bits
- Alright, it’s time to bring a bit of levity to the season. So if I have time—and the situation suits—I might make a Bucks-themed meme here and there. Here is the first!
- I think the NBA actually hates the Bucks with this schedule. Per the broadcast, Milwaukee has the hardest schedule in November of all 30 teams. Thanks, Adam Silver. Really looking out for the little guy here.
- The Bucks actually did OK in the paint battle, considering how many easy buckets Luka Doncic can generate at the rim, only losing 48-40. Milwaukee also got 58 points off their bench.
- After not watching Doncic yet this season, I forgot how much of a drag the constant trips to the free throw line for breathing on him can be. Not that he wasn’t drawing some legit fouls, but some of those calls seem to be reserved for a select few NBA players.
- Even though it was a rough night for Nate Ament, Jenkins’ postgame answer about how he’s seen the rook’s defensive growth this year was really enlightening. I remain very intrigued by the archetype of player they are trying to mould him into.
Up Next
The Bucks head back on the road to take on the Orlando Magic on Friday night. Catch the game at 6:00 p.m. CST on MY24.
