Two more to go. The Brooklyn Nets wrapped up the home schedule on Thursday night against the Indiana Pacers. They lost by a bunch but helped their draft cause. That’s a win.
The opponent tonight has a lot on their plates. The Milwaukee Bucks are hoping to see a better tomorrow, but today is pretty rough. They played the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night and lost 137-111.
Where to follow the game
WLNY TV, Channel 55 on TV. WFAN on radio. Gotham Sports on streaming. Tip after 8 PM.
Injuries
The following are out:
- Nic Claxton
- Noah Clowney
- Egor Demin
- Terance Mann
- Josh Minnott
- Michael Porter Jr
- Day’ron Sharpe
- Nolan Traore
- Ziaire Williams
- Danny Wolf
We’ll see if anyone else
sits.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Porter Jr, Bobby Portis, and Gary Trent Jr are out. Giannis wants to play in the Bucks home finale with his two brothers, but his GM says not happening. We shall see.
The game
Milwaukee won the first meeting while Brooklyn took games two and three.
The end of the regular season is a gold mine for random events. And one of the most random I’ve come across is Jericho Sims getting a triple double. Over at Brew Hoop, Jack Trehearne wrote:
“Sims’ game just continues to blossom, and you can see the confidence washing over him. Doc continues to use him as a hub, and he’s getting increasingly comfortable making plays and trusting himself in that role. A fair few of Jericho’s assists came off scramble situations where he found a shooter before the defence had set, but he also had some advanced backdoor passes to Rollins and Ryan. Furthermore, he’s trusting himself to take dudes one-on-one a few times every game now, something he wouldn’t have dared to try at the start of the season.“
Keep working and something good will happen.
If Ben Saraf plays, he’ll try to put another good outing together. He played 28 minutes last night and Jordi Fernandez praised his decision making improvements. Who knows how many minutes he’ll play tonight, but the hope is he can take some of the good moments and build on them as he heads into his second season.
As Milwaukee prepares for its future, maybe AJ Green will be a part of it? He’s increased his three point volume every season as he’s gotten more minutes. The Bucks need as many good young players as humanly possible and maybe Green is someone they’ll keep around.
Someone a lot of people don’t want around is Doc Rivers. It’s been a disappointing, frustrating run for the Hall of Fame coach, and it might be best if he and the team part ways. Things haven’t gone well and this team needs an infusion of new energy in the worst way.
Player to watch: Giannis Antetokounmpo
Giannis won’t be playing, but he’ll be someone we have to watch this off-season. Shams Charania has been on the Giannis trade beat for many years, and he published his latest dispatch on April 7:
Antetokounmpo expressed serious doubts and concerns about the Bucks’ roster months before the season started. The Bucks built contending rosters for more than half a decade, but the blockbuster trades to acquire Jrue Holiday, who helped them win the 2021 championship, and Lillard in 2020 and 2023, respectively, assisted the Bucks in convincing Antetokounmpo to sign multiple extensions at the cost of spreading their assets thin. They relinquished three first-round picks and four pick swaps in those moves, leaving them without the high-value tradeable contracts and draft picks to make a big move after their third consecutive first-round exit last spring.
It’s why Antetokounmpo reiterated to the Bucks for a few months before the Feb. 5 trade deadline that he was prepared to be moved. He declined to publicize a trade request, but he made it clear to all parties involved behind the scenes that he felt both sides needed to move on immediately, as the franchise was not in position to compete.
Well alright.
The Brooklyn Nets will reportedly poke around to see if Giannis can be obtained via trade in the summer time. Depending on how their draft goes, maybe they can make something happen. Either way, it seems like Antetokounmpo’s time in Milwaukee is up, and it’s ending on a sad note. For as ugly as the exit is right now, the many great years matter more and that’s what people should remember.
EJ Liddell will get as many minutes as he can handle. He played 37 minutes last night and he’ll probably be around that mark again tonight. The focus of the last two games will be giving young players as many minutes as possible while hoping for the best position possible in the Draft.
From the Vault
One week away from WrestleMania!
More reading: Brew Hoop, SB Nation NBA, New York Post, New York Daily News, Clutch Points, Nets Wire, Steve’s Newsletter
- Brooklyn Nets Game Notes – Brooklyn Nets
- Milwaukee Bucks Game Notes – Milwaukee Bucks Game Notes
- Brooklyn faces Milwaukee, aims to break road skid – AP
