Don’t look now but the Milwaukee Bucks are officially back on track after a bump start to the season. The Bucks’ 106-103 win over the Miami Heat on Tuesday evened their overall record to 9-9.
And while that may not sound like anything to brag about for a team led by two future Hall of Famers and a head coach likely to be enshrined someday as well, it’s a big deal based on where they were just a couple weeks ago.
Milwaukee has now won five in a row and seven of their last eight games. This comes after dropping four out of fives games to open the month of November and crawling to a 1-6 record before beating the Jazz on Nov. 7. The Bucks are now 3-0 and leading Group B for the Emirates NBA Cup.
Tuesday’s most recent victory also came without Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was held out of the lineup with swelling in his knee, according to reports from ESPN and other outlets. But part of why the Bucks rescued Damian Lillard from the abyss of Portland before last season is to make it so they can win without Antetokounmpo having to dominate. And Lillard stepped up like only he could.
Lillard went off for one of his best performances of the season, certainly of the month. The eight-time All-Star scored his 17 of his team’s first 22 points, eventually totaling 37 for the game while connecting on 10-of-17 shots from the field, 8-of-13 from three and a perfect 9-of-9 from the charity stripe. He also added 12 assists and three rebounds.
Milwaukee’s next leading scorer behind Lillard was Brook Lopez with 13.
Lillard entered the night averaging 25.2 points, 4.6 boards and 7.4 assists per game. This win comes after both Lillard and Antetokounmpo surpassed 30 points in Milwaukee’s 125-119 win over the Charlotte Hornets.
Antetokounmpo was averaging 32.4 points, 11.9 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game before being forced sit out.
The Bucks are only going to go as far as their two superstars take them, and both are hitting their stride as fall turn to winter. And with a favorable schedule coming up, it’s even possible Lillard could continue to turn back the clock to his Trail Blazer days and lead the charge even if Antetokounmpo has to miss significant time.
Milwaukee has Washington, Detroit and Atlanta on deck as their next three games, granted that schedule is then followed by a marquee matchup in Boston with the defending-champion Celtics on Dec. 6.
But no matter what happens against the Celtics, the NBA should be back on notice that the Bucks are on the rise and firmly back in playoff position. Milwaukee currently sits as the Eastern Conference’s No. 5 seed and are only one game back of the Knicks for the No. 4 spot.
