A tough start to the year finally looks to maybe, kinda, hopefully, sorta get a breather with the 0-3 Milwaukee Bucks stopping in NYC to take on the equally winless Brooklyn Nets. After getting drubbed in resounding fashion last night v. the Toronto Raptors, 89-106, an opportunity to take on one of the East’s projected bottom-rung teams could be the spark Milwaukee needs to break into the win column. With a return to health of various members of the roster (hopefully) in the cards, tonight’s game and a stretch of matchups against the Philadelphia 76ers at home, @ the Knicks, and then welcoming the Nets at the BMO Harris Bradley Center could turn a bleak situation around quite quickly. First, though, the Bucks must deal with the vaunted Jarrett Jack-led Nets.

The Logistics

When – 6:30 PM Central

Where – Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY

TV & Radio – FS Wisconsin; 620 WTMJ

Probable Starters

Milwaukee Bucks (0-3) Brooklyn Nets (0-3)

Michael Carter-Williams PG Jarrett Jack

Khris Middleton SG Markel Brown

Giannis Antetokounmpo SF Joe Johnson

Johnny O’Bryant PF Thaddeus Young

Greg Monroe C Brook Lopez

Storylines of the Night

Nets Update

Lo, how the mighty have fallen. As of just a few seasons ago, Brooklyn appeared to be on a serious upswing in the

Eastern Conference. Flush with cash from a new Russian owner unafraid to spend money, a roster worth watching night in and night out, and a still visible future on the horizon. Then they decided to go for broke, sell every draft pick they own out to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. When things didn’t pan out, instead of a slow decline thanks to the aging roster, things nearly imploded. Going from first-round playoff series winners in one year under the tutelage of rookie head coach Jason Kidd to a deathly tailspin into the bottom of the East can’t have been great fun.

It doesn’t help the team that they have essentially no incentive to tank this year given the fact that Boston owns their pick in the 2016 draft. Thus, the only real option for the Nets as of now is to just try and spoil that pick as much as possible by competing at as high of a level as possible. Unfortunately, due to roster building issues, trying to compete as currently constructed may come as a bit of a challenge for Brooklyn. Either way, they’ve still got plenty of okay pieces that could put a game or two together, so avoiding a trap game should be top of mind for Milwaukee.

Three Pointers Everywhere

If there has been one area where the Bucks have gotten burned over and over and over again, it is in giving up a barrage of three pointers to opposing offenses. Opponents are shooting a league-high 46.4% from the floor from beyond the arc on ~23 attempts each night. That’s a 12.1% increase year-over-year, and it is apparent watching the team defense that a lack of speed and agility at various positions rip open some pretty big holes in intended defensive rotations. When everyone on the court has to be running around to attempt to cover for a teammate who might’ve been shed from his man, openings are bound to emerge.

Giannis being on the court has helped some given his versatility, but there’s only oh so much one player can do to drag a defense out of the depths, and he’s doing everything one can. As the team continues to adopt and better understand Kidd’s system things should work themselves out a bit more, but many guys such as Bayless, Vasquez, Copeland, JOB, etc etc. are all somewhat net negatives when the Bucks aren’t trying to score. A 121.5 team defensive rating doesn’t just “happen” by fluke or accident, especially when considering that this franchise possessed one of the top defenses in the entire league but a year ago.

The Bucks look to be in luck at least a little bit tonight thanks to the Nets being non-3-centric team taking only about 12.7 attempts from range a night (28th in the league). That means interior defending will most likely need to stand out, and a true test of Greg Monroe’s impact on D might fully well be on display tonight.