MILWAUKEE — Before leaving Fiserv Forum on Sunday, Bucks guard George Hill stopped by to give Cavaliers rookie guard Collin Sexton a handshake.

The two had been teammates, with Hill being the veteran mentor to Sexton, for the first two months of the season.

Then came Dec. 7 when Hill was dealt from the Cavaliers to the Bucks, who are the best team in the NBA. He took the floor against his old team on Sunday for the second time since the trade. And he recorded his best offensive output with the Bucks, scoring 17 points in their 127-105 win vs. the Cavs.

“It’s nothing against them. I like every guy in that locker room,” Hill said. “We’re all still brothers. We’re all playing the same sport, trying to do the same thing.”

Hill originally came to Cleveland in early February 2018 as part of the team’s massive midseason roster overhaul. He and the Cavs reached the NBA Finals.

But the Cavs’ fortunes went the other direction after the season. The day Hill was dealt, Cleveland was 5-20 and Milwaukee was 16-7.

The Bucks now possess the NBA’s best record at 55-19.

Hill has been a backup since coming to Milwaukee, playing behind Eric Bledsoe and Malcolm Brogdon.

“Sometimes it’s hard to come to a new team that’s already one of the best in the league,” Hill said. “I’m just finding my way, the ways I can be effective in this offense with the minutes I’m given and trying to have fun doing it.”

Sunday was the second time Hill played the Cavs as a member of the Bucks.

The first came on Dec. 10, three days after he was dealt to Milwaukee. He had just two points in 12 minutes of action.

He missed the Cavs’ 107-102 win on Wednesday due to left groin soreness.

Despite Sunday’s loss, the Cavs have taken steps forward in recent weeks, due in large part to Kevin Love’s return from injury. And their old teammate saw it in preparing to meet them for the final time this season.

“They’re coming together. I think the young guys are playing at a high level,” Hill said. “Collin Sexton has come into his own, doing a phenomenal job over the last six, seven games.”

Sexton, who started as Hill’s backup, had 18 points on Sunday in the loss. It ended a stretch of eight consecutive games with 20 points or more from the rookie point guard, which is a team record.

He’s still playing the role of a mentor to a degree. Milwaukee has not gotten out of the first round of the playoffs since Giannis Antetokounmpo joined the team. They have been eliminated in the first round in their last three postseason trips.

Hill brought with him 102 games of playoff experience, including last season when he averaged 9.2 points in the Cavs’ run to the Finals.

But at the moment, Hill is just fine with his role on his new team.

“When it’s time for me to speak, then it’s time for me to speak,” Hill said. “I’m just trying to be that positive role model in this locker room and a guy that they can lean on when they need questions answered and things like that.”