Yes, it was a bit of a rough start to the year on the whole as the variety of pieces added in the off-season for Milwaukee looked to find a rhythm while facing a mound of injuries to key players. It took the Bucks 4 games into the season to grab their first W, and all it took was taking on the now 0-6 Brooklyn Nets to get there. Since, the Bucks have torn away two more wins against improving teams in the Philadelphia 76ers and in revenge against the New York Knicks last night. Now, Milwaukee is faced with an opportunity to push their record on the season up and above .500 as the Nets arrive in Milwaukee to take another crack at Milwaukee. Preview time!

The Logistics

When – 7:30 PM Central

Where – BMO Harris Bradley Center, Milwaukee, WI

TV & Radio – FS Wisconsin; 620 WTMJ

Probable Starters

Brooklyn Nets (0-6) Milwaukee Bucks (3-3)

Jarrett Jack PG Tyler Ennis

Joe Johnson SG Khris Middleton

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson SF Giannis Antetokounmpo

Thaddeus Young PF Johnny O’Bryant or Jabari Parker

Brook Lopez C Greg Monroe

Storylines of the Night

Jabari Out?

As the little bits and pieces of news filtered outwards to the general public regarding Jabari Parker’s eventual return to the roster, one of the main promises that head coach Jason Kidd made was that Jabari would be kept out of the second halves of back-to-back games without a doubt as he worked his way back to shape. Tonight, of course, is the second half of a back-to-back after the Bucks topped the Knicks last night, 99-92. Whether Kidd will stay true to his word and keep Jabari out hasn’t been made clear, but if Parker does remain out for tonight one can reasonably expect Johnny O’Bryant to fill in for him at the 4 spot.

In his limited minutes since returning from an ACL tear during his rookie campaign, Parker has shown flashes of promise and moments which highlight that his road to recovery isn’t fully completed yet. He’s averaged 4 points and 2.5 rebounds per game on 17 minutes a night. The stats aren’t necessarily important at the moment; rather, it is key that Jabari simply build up his chemistry with the other starters and his comfort relating to his shooting on offense and role on defense. Many of his jumpshots so far have looked a bit tentative coming off his hands, though he did have this nice little dunk shot:

So, uhm, yeah, he’s still the explosive scorer that made him so dangerous during his one year at Duke and in the 25 games he played last year. Defensively, he’s done an adequate job all things considered, especially when he is facing man-to-man. Occasionally he loses track of his guy in the zone or gets switched out into a mismatch, but the traditional weakness in his game hasn’t looked to be especially glaring thus far. Keep a watch there, though, as the year progresses.

Injuries Still a Thing

It has been the highest recurring issue for the Bucks so far this year: injuries to critical guys. Michael Carter-Williams (ankle) and OJ Mayo (hamstring) are still listed as question marks for tonight’s game, though the Bucks got a huge boost from the return of John Henson. As long as Tyler Ennis is able to stand in as the starting point guard and distribute, the hole in the starters should be filled. Outside of that, making up for the loss of OJ’s scoring off the bench will continue to fall on the shoulders of the entire second unit and namely Greivis Vasquez and Jerryd Bayless.

Once the entire roster is back to full health, Jason Kidd should be able to work out a more reliable set of rotations to ride the rest of the year out with. As it stands, it seems like each night there is some new leak in the ship needing plugging. The results with the attempts to right things have been as mixed as the Bucks’s record, but there’s only oh so much doing to get equivalent production from the other players available.