Preseason Rapid Recap: Bucks 128, Thunder 126

Bucks win! In their second preseason game, the Milwaukee Bucks secured a road W against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Myles Turner had a monster game for Milwaukee, scoring a team-high 19 points in 22 minutes. However, it was Brayden Burries who starred late, closing out the game in clutch fashion. Aday Mara led the Thunder with 22 points.

NBA.com Box Score

Game Recap

The Bucks actually began the first quarter with a strong pace. Jaime Jaquez Jr. started with a couple of threes and scored eight points in the first few

minutes. However, after jumping out to an 18-13 lead, the misses quickly stacked up for the Bucks as they continued their barrage from deep. After a Herro missed three, OKC answered with their own bomb to take the lead, and would not look back for the rest of the half. About midway through the first, we got to see both Kasparas Jakucionis and Ousmane Dieng check in for their first minutes of the preseason, and both got to work quickly; Dieng was able to dribble to his spot in the paint and hit a floater, and then on the next possession was able to find Jakucionis behind the arc for his first bucket in a Milwaukee jersey. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder were rolling, though, and closed the quarter up 44-35.

The Bucks then seemed to have one of those classic stretches where they could not buy a bucket, but this time it was not for lack of effort, but for lack of cohesion. While Milwaukee went cold, OKC swiftly built a 24-point edge, but instead of folding, the Bucks kept the energy high—even if it was chaotic. Dieng fed Ament on the backdoor cut for a yam, and Ament seemed particularly set on attacking the rim and having his presence felt in the paint. But then came bad news: Ament extended at the rim, landed awkwardly, and twisted his ankle while drawing the foul; he was promptly taken out of the game and did not return. Moving on, the Bucks closed out the half decently, with Herro finally getting on the scoreboard and Rollins hitting a sweet teardrop—Bucks down 82-64 at the half.

OKC, like Minnesota, rested all of their starters except Mara for the second half. The Bucks, meanwhile, kept their starters in a bit longer and began to turn the game because of it, outscoring the Thunder 33-20 in the third to cut the deficit to five at the end of the quarter. The Bucks began moving the ball more easily. As the 3rd quarter carried on, the starting lineup was subbed out entirely except for Kel’el Ware, who feasted on the Thunder’s bench for the rest of his minutes. The Bucks were down just five, 102-97, after three.

The fourth quarter saw more Bucks get their first preseason minutes: Bogoljub Markovic, Kameron Jones, and Cormac Ryan all finally got some run; those three closed it out with Pete Nance and Brayden Burries. The game was tight throughout the final quarter, with Burries giving the Bucks their first lead of the game with about four minutes on the clock. After OKC reclaimed the lead, Burries drew a foul and tied it up with under 2 minutes left. Fellow first-round draft pick Bennet Stirtz took the lead back with a triple of his own, only for Burries to finish through double coverage at the rim and pull the Bucks within one. On the ensuing possession, after a made OKC free throw, Burries hammered home a dunk to tie the game and went on to dominate the final minutes of play with composure beyond his years. Bucks win!

Stat That Stood Out

31: the number of rebounds the Bucks secured in the first half while OKC were playing their starters. The Bucks rebounded the Thunder 31 to 24, a disparity that grew even larger on the offensive glass: 12-3. Very on-brand for a Taylor Jenkins’ team, the Bucks shot five more times than the Thunder in the first half.

Obscene Overreaction

The Milwaukee Bucks will be hanging their next banner in 2027… OK, maybe that is a little too obscene of an overreaction, but how about this one instead: Ousmane Dieng needs to start at the 4. He tied Ryan Rollins with a team-high seven assists and logged just one turnover, and it was clear from the jump that his court vision and awareness were locked in. The best versions of Turner and Ware will be unlocked with steady playmaking around them, as both had over 80% of their shots assisted last season. With Dieng able to switch and cover multiple positions on defense, he could be the glue guy we are looking for.