Latest news with #KevinPorterJr.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Milwaukee Bucks free agent tracker: Keep up-to-date with the latest rumors and signings
The Milwaukee Bucks enter the 2025 free agency period with options at their disposal, thanks in large part to the midseason trade of Khris Middleton. The Bucks managed to escape the punitive 'second apron' restrictions they faced last summer and have the following options at their disposal as began negotiating with players from other teams beginning at 5 p.m. on June 30. Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst, left, and coach Doc Rivers will look to reshape their team this offseason. The Bucks have access to: Advertisement $5.1 million bi-annual exception (BAE) UPDATE: The Bucks were initially going to use this exception to re-sign Kevin Porter Jr. in a deal reported on June 30, but after the activity of July 1 Porter is being fit into the $8.8 million room mid-level exception. $7.2 million trade exception UPDATE: A league source told the Journal Sentinel the Bucks will have to renounce this exception in order to fit in Myles Turner. $14.1 million non-tax level exception (NTLME) UPDATE: A league source told the Journal Sentinel the Bucks will not have access to this exception as they will use cap space to sign Myles Turner. Who are the Bucks' free agents? Teams were allowed to negotiate with their own free agents after the conclusion of the NBA Finals. The Bucks plan to re-sign Gary Trent Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., Taurean Prince and Jericho Sims to two-year deals, all with a player option. Brook Lopez will depart, heading to the Los Angeles Clippers. Here is the latest on Bucks free agent rumors: Bucks interested in Chris Paul, point guard prefers to stay close to L.A. The Bucks have shown interest in signing the 40-year-old point guard, but Paul continues to make it clear in offseason interviews his preference is to remain close to his family in California. Advertisement Bucks re-sign Ryan Rollins to 3-year, $12 million deal The Bucks had to rescind their restricted free agent qualifying offer on Ryan Rollins in order to fit in Myles Turner with cap space -- which allowed Rollins to hit the open market. The Bucks still won his services however, with a 3-year, $12 million deal that begins at $3.6 million the first year. The third year is a player option. Bucks to trade Pat Connaughton and draft picks to Hornets for Vasilije Micić Milwaukee dipped into its future draft capital to send Pat Connaughton to the Charlotte Hornets, attaching their 2031 and 2032 second-round draft picks to Connaughton's expiring $9.4 million salary to acquire Vasilije Micić. Micić had his $8.1 million team option picked up by the Phoenix Suns in order to be traded to the Hornets in a deal for center Mark Williams. Advertisement Bucks to sign Gary Harris to two-year deal The Orlando Magic declined their team option on guard Gary Harris, and the Bucks swooped in and plan to sign him to a two-year, minimum deal with the second year being a player option. Harris is entering his 12th year in the league and will be 31 years old before the season begins. He is a career 36.9% shooter from behind the 3-point line, but he's gotten better the last five seasons in Orlando from deep (38.8%). Bucks to re-sign Jericho Sims to two-year deal The Bucks will re-sign the reserve center a two-year, minimum deal with the second year being a player option. The Bucks acquired Sims at the trade deadline from New York as part of the 4-team deal that landed them Kyle Kuzma from Washington. Sims played 14 games for the Bucks in the regular season and averaged 4.9 points per game. He missed the last four weeks of the regular season due to thumb surgery but returned for the playoffs. Advertisement Bucks to sign Myles Turner, former Pacers center, to 4-year deal, and stunningly waive Damian Lillard in the process What a wild news drop from the Milwaukee Bucks beginning around 10 a.m. CT July 1. First came news that the Bucks had reached an agreement with Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner, a four-year, $107 million deal for the big man who just came off a run to the NBA Finals. It enables the Bucks to replace the departure of Brook Lopez with the 6-11, 29-year-old who averaged 15.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game last year. That news alone was a shockwave. Then came the follow-up, in which news came that the Bucks were waiving Damian Lillard to make it happen. Advertisement Lillard, who suffered a torn Achilles in the playoffs and stood to miss a massive chunk of the 2025-26 season, will no longer be part of the Bucks' plans. His $113 million will be stretched over the next five seasons according to a report from ESPN's Shams Charania. Lillard, a massive trade acquisition two seasons ago, averaged a gaudy 24.6 points per game in his time with the Bucks, but the Bucks never quite gelled with him on board (though injuries played a significant role in the team's lack of playoff success). Lillard turns 35 on July 15. Bucks to re-sign Gary Trent Jr. to 2-year deal Signed last summer on a veteran minimum deal, Trent re-signed this year at a 120% raise above that for 2 years at $7.5 million. The second year is a player option. Last year, Trent shot 41.6% from behind the 3-point line in 74 games while averaging 11.1 points per game. Shot 50% from deep and averaged 18.8 points per game in the Bucks' playoffs loss to Indiana. Advertisement Bucks to re-sign Taurean Prince to 2-year deal Prince will re-sign on a two-year deal, that includes a player option. The 2025-26 contract is for the veteran minimum. Signed last summer on a veteran minimum deal, Prince finished third in the NBA in 3-point shooting at 43.9%. Played in 80 games (73 starts) and averaged 8.2 points per game. Brook Lopez to sign with Los Angeles Clippers The 37-year-old center's agency announced on ESPN that he is set to join the Los Angeles Clippers on a 2-year, $18 million deal. Lopez, a California native, just finished a 2-year, $48 million free agent contract signed before the 2023 season. Nearly matched a career-high by shooting 37.3% from behind the 3-point line while averaging 13 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game. Advertisement Bucks to re-sign Kevin Porter Jr. to two-year deal After declining his player option, Porter became an unrestricted free agent and agreed to return to the Bucks on a 2-year, $10.5 million deal. The second year is a player option. He played 30 games for the Bucks after being acquired at the trade deadline. In 30 appearances (two starts), Porter played about 20 minutes per game and shot 49.4% from the field and 40.8% from behind the three-point line, numbers which would easily be career-bests for a season. Porter's agent announced the intent to re-sign on ESPN. Lakers to target Brook Lopez? One of the worst kept secrets of free agency is that the Los Angeles Lakers will seek to reunite with Brook Lopez. The Lakers are in need of size after trading away Anthony Davis for Luka Dončić last season, and Lopez could be a good complement despite the fact he is not a rim-running lob threat that Dončić typically prefers. Lopez is a California native and played the 2017-18 season for the Lakers before signing with the Bucks. Advertisement Bobby Portis signs 3-year contract to remain with Bucks Portis was seeking a long-term, lucrative deal and got both by declining his player option and will sign a 3-year, $44 million deal that includes a player option for the third year. Portis signed in Milwaukee in 2020 and is not only a fan favorite, but a reliable, core contributor for the Bucks. Bucks extend Ryan Rollins qualifying offer, becomes unrestricted agent The Bucks found a diamond in the rough with Rollins last season after originally signing him to a two-way contract to begin the year. He earned the trust of head coach Doc Rivers and by the end of the season he earned a guaranteed deal. Now, the Bucks have some semblance of control over Rollins, as they can match any offer that another team presents to him. Advertisement Kevin Porter Jr. declines player option, becomes free agent As expected, the 25-year-old is willing to test the free agent market after declining his player option for $2.5 million. He is seeking a more lucrative deal after successfully returning to the NBA in the 2024-25 season without major incident. Porter had spent the previous year out of the league following an alleged domestic violent assault and off-court issues in Cleveland and Houston. Pat Connaughton picks up player option, could be part of a trade Connaughton, 32, picked up his option and the Bucks will once again entertain trade options for the wing player. In his first full season under Doc Rivers, Connaughton played his fewest games (41), fewest minutes per game (14.7) and made his fewest three-point attempts (32.1%) since 2016-17. Advertisement A league source told the Journal Sentinel there was interest in Connaughton at last season's trade deadline, but roughly $4 million left on last season's deal plus this year's $9.4 million option was a bit too rich for some teams. Kevin Porter Jr. expected to opt out HoopsHype, a USA TODAY Network property, reported that Kevin Porter Jr. is expected to opt out of his deal. League sources also told the Journal Sentinel there is mutual interest between Porter and the Bucks to bring him back, however. Bucks to reunite with Malcolm Brogdon? ESPN reported the Bucks have interest in a veteran point guard to replace the injured Damian Lillard for 2025-26, including former Bucks Rookie of the Year Malcolm Brogdon. Brogdon, 32, played for the Bucks from 2016-19 before being traded to Indiana. He was the league's Sixth Man of the Year with Boston in 2023. He has played in just 63 games the last two seasons in Portland and Washington but shot 38.4% from the three-point line. Advertisement Bucks seeking veteran point guard help ESPN added there is interest in free agent point guards Dennis Schröder and Tyus Jones. Schröder will be 32 years old when the season begins but he played well last season for three teams (Brooklyn, Golden State and Detroit). He is not a consistent three-point threat, however. Jones, 29, has shot 41% from behind the three-point line the last two seasons in Washington and Phoenix. Both guards are 6 feet, 1 inches. Which Bucks had player options? Note: Official paperwork must be filed with the league to pick up an option. No paperwork must be filed to decline the option, meaning the deadline can pass and the contract lapses. Advertisement Who are the Bucks' restricted free agents? Ryan Rollins ($2.6 million qualifying offer, deadline June 29). UPDATE: The club tendered Rollins the qualifying offer, officially making him an unrestricted free agent. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Bucks free agent tracker: Stay up-to-date with latest rumors and signings
New York Times
02-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Kevon Looney leaves Warriors for Pelicans
Bringing Kevin Porter Jr. back for the 2025-26 season at an affordable rate (two years, $11 million, according to The Athletic's Fred Katz) was one of the moves that made the most sense for the Bucks this offseason. Porter is only 25 and gives the Bucks an upside play at point guard with Damian Lillard expected to miss most of the regular season as he recovers from surgery on a torn left Achilles tendon. In his first 16 games with the Bucks, Porter averaged 10.3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 16.4 minutes per game. Once Lillard went down with the diagnosis of a deep vein thrombosis in his right calf, Porter averaged 14.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game in 24.7 minutes per game, as he took on a bigger role. In that larger role, Porter thrived and earned a place in Doc Rivers' playoff rotation. After some initial struggles in the postseason, Porter found his footing and played well in both Game 4 (23 points, five rebounds and six assists) and Game 5 (11 points, three rebounds and seven assists) against the Indiana Pacers In a second season with the Bucks, Porter should have plenty of opportunity on the ball. Getting to play with Giannis Antetokounmpo more consistently should be a huge help. In 541 possessions on the floor together — which was only about 270 minutes, a very small sample — the two-man combination of Antetokounmpo and Porter was plus-20.1 points per 100 possessions. They scored 125 points per 100 possessions and gave up just 104.9 points per 100 possessions. Per Cleaning the Glass, the offensive production was in the 97th percentile and the defensive production was in the 98th percentile.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Timberwolves fall apart in fourth, blow 24-point lead in loss to Bucks
Seemingly en route to taking another giant leap toward securing home-court advantage in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, the Timberwolves wasted 36 minutes of great work with a colossal fourth-quarter collapse on Tuesday in Milwaukee, falling 110-103 to the Bucks. The Wolves were out-scored 40-13 in the fourth quarter as their five-game winning streak came to a screeching halt thanks to a zone defense Milwaukee masterfully employed down the stretch. Advertisement Minnesota led 95 to 71 with 10 minutes to play in regulation, but was out-scored 39-8 the rest of the way. Milwaukee scored the game's next 23 points over a span of fewer than five minutes after going down 24, with a layup from Kevin Porter Jr. bringing the Bucks to within one. The deficit was erased entirely on a triple from A.J. Green to knot the score with three and a half minutes to play. 'It was the zone. I thought early in the zone, we missed some good looks. Then we had some turnovers that got them some good looks on the other end,' Wolves coach Chris Finch told reporters. 'Then we just kind of froze. We didn't move the ball, over-surveyed. When we did make the pass to the middle of the floor, it was late. Then turnover, turnover, turnover.' The game nearly went off the rails moments later, as Porter Jr. and Rudy Gobert got into a quarrel that resulted in double technical fouls for Porter Jr. and Gobert and an additional tech whistled on Gary Trent Jr. Anthony Edwards hit the ensuing free throw to put Minnesota back in front for his first point of the frame. Advertisement But Edwards turned the ball over on Minnesota's next possession, which resulted in a Bucks' transition dunk. The next possession ended in the exact same fashion, and the Bucks went up three. Minnesota (46-33) was bamboozled by Milwaukee's zone defense as the Wolves were timid and directionless on the perimeter. Soft passes were routinely deflected or intercepted. 'Ball movement got stagnant. Body movement got stagnant,' Julius Randle told reporters. 'We just couldn't figure it out, for whatever reason.' Milwaukee has now won five straight and is cozying into the No. 5 seed in the East and a second consecutive first-round playoff matchup with Indiana. Advertisement Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo played integral roles in Minnesota building such a large advantage Tuesday. The duo combined for nine triples off the bench, six of which came from DiVincenzo. Minnesota largely limited Giannis Antetokounmpo through three quarters thanks to a strong defensive effort from Randle. Antetokounmpo had just six points at the break. But all that still wasn't enough to build a cushion big enough to sustain such a meltdown. Minnesota went 4 for 20 in a fourth quarter in which it committed eight turnovers. Six of those giveaways occurred in the final 5 minutes, 20 seconds. 'It's a bad fourth quarter against a zone defense,' Finch said. 'I don't think it's a microcosm of the season.' The Bucks closed with Antetokounmpo and four bench players — Bobby Portis, who was making his return after a 25-game suspension, Gary Trent Jr., Porter Jr. and Green. Antetokounmpo finished with a triple-double, including 13 points and five rebounds in the fourth quarter. Advertisement Milwaukee knocking off Minnesota prior to the all-star break when the Bucks, who are without Damian Lillard for the foreseeable future, beat the Wolves at Target Center. They were pivotal again Tuesday in delivering a major blow to Minnesota's hopes of landing a top four seed. The Wolves were set to be the No. 4 seed in the West with a win Tuesday. Now, they're eighth, and Thursday's game in Memphis looks like a must win if Minnesota is even to avoid the play-in tournament. Finch's message to the team after the game was simple. 'I just said, 'Yeah, tough one. Let's go. We've got to be better.' We've got a big game coming up, like they all are,' Finch said. 'We didn't expect to go undefeated over our last 10 games. It doesn't matter where it comes, how it comes. If it comes, we've got to go get the ones that are still there to be got.' 'We can't sit here and pout, not at this point in the season. We've got to move onto the next one,' Randle said. 'We've (bounced back before). So I'm confident that we'll do it again. As frustrating as it is, we can't let it linger into the next game. We don't have time for that right now. I believe in this team, I believe we'll do it. We've just got to do it.' Related Articles
Miami Herald
06-04-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
NBA roundup: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks top Heat in OT
Giannis Antetokounmpo tallied 36 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists for his second straight triple-double and 10th of the season as the Milwaukee Bucks secured a 121-115 road win over the Miami Heat in overtime on Saturday. Kevin Porter Jr. had 24 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists off the bench for the Bucks, who won their third straight. Brook Lopez, who had 17 points, sank a layup with 38.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 111. Both Kyle Anderson of Miami and Antetokounmpo missed midrange jumpers, sending the game to overtime, where the Bucks outscored the Heat 10-4. Milwaukee won its fourth in a row over Miami and completed the season series sweep. It is the first time the Bucks have swept the series in 10 seasons. Bam Adebayo paced Miami with 31 points and 12 rebounds, while Alec Burks chipped in with 24 points as the Heat lost their second straight game after winning six in a row. Knicks 121, Hawks 105 Karl-Anthony Towns had 30 points and 11 rebounds, OG Anunoby added 14 points and New York cruised to the road win over Atlanta. All five Knicks starters scored in double figures, including Josh Hart, who finished with 16 points, 11 assists and nine boards. Mikal Bridges had 20 points and Delon Wright scored 10 for New York, which won its fourth in five games. Trae Young had 16 points and nine assists for the Hawks, while both Terance Mann and Caris LeVert scored 14 off the bench. Atlanta dropped its fifth in six games, dropping to seventh in the Eastern Conference. Grizzlies 109, Pistons 103 Desmond Bane scored nine of his game-high 38 points in the final 2:50 to lift visiting Memphis past Detroit. Jaren Jackson Jr. added 27 points and 11 rebounds for Memphis, which won its ninth straight game against the Pistons. Grizzlies big man Zach Edey finished with a career-high 21 boards and a team-high six assists. Scotty Pippen Jr. finished with 15 points. Cade Cunningham, who returned after missing the past six games with a bruised left calf, led the Pistons with 25 points and nine rebounds. Ausar Thompson had 18 points and 11 boards and Isaiah Stewart finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. Timberwolves 114, 76ers 109 Anthony Edwards scored 37 points, including a pair of clutch baskets down the stretch, to help Minnesotae earn a road win over Philadelphia for its fifth consecutive victory. Minnesota avoided a costly stumble against a 76ers side coming in on a 10-game skid. The Timberwolves put the game away when Edwards hit a wild 3-point fling with 7.4 seconds remaining and the Timberwolves clinging to a two-point lead. Rudy Gobert finished with 23 points, 19 rebounds and three blocks. Minnesota is 3-0 on its five-game road swing and remains in contention for a guaranteed playoff berth in the tight Western Conference race. The Timberwolves got all they could handle from Philadelphia, who were led by Quentin Grimes (28 points) and Guerschon Yabusele (19 points). Clippers 135, Mavericks 104 James Harden and Kawhi Leonard each scored 29 points as Los Angeles finished off a convincing victory over Dallas at Inglewood, Calif. Ivica Zubac added 25 points with 10 rebounds for the Clippers, who improved to 11-2 since March 12. Harden added 14 assists as the Clippers won both games of a back-to-back against the Mavericks. Los Angeles pulled even with both the Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies while sitting a half-game behind the fifth-place Golden State Warriors. Anthony Davis scored 27 points with nine rebounds after not playing Friday against the Clippers because of injury maintenance on a nagging abdominal injury. Dallas is ninth in the West and just percentage points ahead of the 10th-place Sacramento Kings, who hold the final play-in spot in the conference. --Field Level Media Field Level Media 2023 - All Rights Reserved
New York Times
14-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Bucks' unconventional starting lineup may be causing defensive issues: 3 observations
With the 2024-25 season winding down, the Milwaukee Bucks find themselves in a hotly contested three-team battle for the Eastern Conference's fourth spot. As of Friday morning, the Bucks are fourth with a 37-28 record after a 126-106 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night. However, the Indiana Pacers, who the Bucks play on Saturday night in Fiserv Forum, are only a half game back at 36-28 and the Detroit Pistons (37-30) trail the Bucks by one game in the standings. Saturday's contest will be the last head-to-head matchup for the Bucks and Pacers, but the Bucks and Pistons finish their respective seasons with contests against each other on Apr. 11 and 13. Advertisement Before the Bucks try to create a little space between themselves and their two Central Division opponents in the Eastern Conference playoff standings with a weekend back-to-back against the Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder, let's play some Ones for an in-depth look at the micro and macro trends that have affected the Bucks in the last week. Backup point guard Kevin Porter Jr. was essential to the Bucks' win on Thursday. Coming off the bench, Porter hit 5-of-7 3-point attempts and added seven free throws for a 22-point outing in only 17 minutes. His boost was essential to the Bucks' balanced scoring effort and a bit of a throwback performance for Porter. Thursday's game was the first time Porter had made five or more 3-pointers since Apr. 4, 2023 when he was with the Houston Rockets. With the Los Angeles Clippers, Porter did not shoot a lot of 3s, but the 24-year-old guard told reporters after Thursday's game the Bucks have encouraged him to get back to shooting 3s as he did in Houston when he shot more than six 3s per game for three straight seasons. But while Porter was spectacular on Thursday, he has struggled with turnovers since coming to Milwaukee. In 225 minutes across 14 games with the Bucks, Porter has 9.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 16.1 minutes per game, but he's also averaging two turnovers per game. His rate of 4.5 turnovers per 36 minutes with the Bucks is a figure that can only be matched by four other players (Trae Young, James Harden, Cade Cunningham, Ja Morant) who have played at least 100 minutes on the season. 'That's non-negotiable,' Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. 'Especially late in the season, you just can't turn the ball over. He knows that, but he's still doing it right now. But we still want him to be aggressive.' Advertisement To Porter's credit, he admitted the issue following Thursday's game and told reporters how he's planning to work on it moving forward. 'I just gotta stay aggressive,' Porter said. 'The last couple games, a lot of my turnovers have been a forced entry pass or little things that it's an easy fix. As long as I stay aggressive, drive and kick and be ready to shoot those catch-and-shoot (3s), those turnovers will handle themselves.' As they lifted weights together at the Target Center before the team's final game before the All-Star break, Damian Lillard had a question for one of his new teammates. They had already spent three games and five days together, so Lillard felt comfortable being somewhat blunt. 'Man, do you ever talk?' Lillard recalled asking. Jericho Sims, the big man the Bucks acquired from the New York Knicks at the trade deadline, smiled and gave a quick response. 'Yeah, I do,' Sims responded, according to Lillard. Noting that calling him all three syllables of his first name on the court wouldn't work, Lillard asked his new teammate if there were any other names he liked to be called. Sims told Lillard that people call him 'J-Rock' or 'Jumpman' and that allowed Lillard to make another joke. 'I will never call you Jumpman,' Lillard told Sims with a smile. 'There is one Jumpman that I'm going to acknowledge as Jumpman.' With the ice properly broken, the conversation continued. Lillard and the rest of Sims' teammates have gotten to know the 26-year-old big man better off the floor over the last month. Bobby Portis' suspension has allowed them to get to know Sims much better on the floor as well. Sims has appeared in all 12 games out of the All-Star break after not appearing in the Bucks' first four games following the trade. While he might be a quiet guy off the floor, the plays made by Sims on the floor tend to be plenty loud. DAME TO JERICHO FOR ANOTHER OOP. Giannis' reaction is all of us. — Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) March 14, 2025 Sims provides a different look for the Bucks than the rest of their big-man rotation. With Giannis Antetokounmpo serving as one of the Bucks' key playmakers over the last decade, the organization has prioritized getting big men who can shoot the 3 and spread the floor for their unicorn big man who regularly brings the ball up the floor and Euro-steps around the competition. Advertisement For the last five years, that has meant Antetokounmpo playing nearly every minute with either Brook Lopez or Portis alongside him. With Antetokounmpo handling the athleticism, the Bucks have looked for their big men to bring something else, which is why Sims has provided something so different for the last month with his shot blocking and rim-running. While the highlights have been spectacular, the results for the team have not been as kind. In 12 games with the Bucks, Sims has averaged 2.8 points and 5.3 rebounds in 15.5 minutes per game. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Bucks have been outscored by 7.8 points per 100 possessions in the 186 minutes Sims has spent on the floor and that is largely because of what has happened offensively. With Sims on the floor, the Bucks have been fine defensively, giving up 115.1 points per 100 possessions (49th percentile), but floundered offensively, scoring only 107.2 points per 100 possessions (13th percentile). Sims is not the offensive engine in any of the lineups, so it is tough to blame him, but his offensive skill set as a rim runner is limited mostly to catching lobs and that can lead to cramped spacing and a crowded floor for playmakers. That has left Rivers hesitant to pair Sims with Antetokounmpo. In only 54 possessions together, lineups featuring Antetokounmpo and Sims have a net rating of plus-5.6 points per 100 possessions, but it's been clear why that lineup has the potential for great success and exceptional failure. On defense, units featuring Antetokounmpo and Sims have surrendered only 100 points per 100 possessions, a defensive rating in the 100th percentile on the season. On offense though, the Bucks have scored just 105.6 points per 100 possessions, an offensive rating in the eighth percentile. Watch Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley on this possession: Mobley was 'guarding' Sims, but paid the rim-running big man little attention. He spent the entire possession with his eyes focused on Antetokounmpo and put himself in position to be in the lane, waiting on Antetokounmpo at the rim. If the Bucks spent more time on an offensive package with Sims on the floor with Antetokounmpo, they might be able to find some creative ways to take advantage of how defenders might ignore Sims to help on the two-time MVP. However, that base defense from the Cavaliers shows why the Bucks have always preferred the spacing provided by stretch bigs around Antetokounmpo. Advertisement Coming out of the All-Star break, the Bucks won six of their first seven games. They won three games on the road and beat both the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets at home for two of their better wins of the season and they did so using an unconventional starting lineup of Lillard, Taurean Prince, Kyle Kuzma, Antetokounmpo and Lopez. That starting lineup does not feature a traditional shooting guard and features three players (Prince, Kuzma, Antetokounmpo) who have been described as power forwards during various points of their careers, but it has been successful thus far. In 334 possessions, that lineup has posted a plus-9.6 net rating with a 118.3 offensive rating (77th percentile) and a 108.8 defensive rating (91st percentile). With an unusually sized lineup though, Rivers has been forced to go with nontraditional defensive matchups with Prince often getting matched up with the opponent's top perimeter scoring option to start games and Kuzma sometimes getting the responsibility in the second half or earlier than that on switches. While it is not traditional, it has worked for the Bucks. That success has been most surprising on the defensive end where the Bucks just don't have normal matchups, but have been surviving in one-on-one moments like this: So, is it sustainable to continue to have Prince and Kuzma defend elite guards in the postseason? 'Yeah, absolutely, because they have the size behind them,' Rivers said on Mar. 7. 'If you can guard Kyrie (Irving) for the last five minutes of a game or Tyler Herro for the last five, why wouldn't that be sustainable? We just wouldn't do it with Kuz for 48 minutes. We don't want him to. We have enough guards that we can keep changing the matchups.' The last week has provided a tougher test for Rivers' faith in his non-traditional defenders getting the job done against top perimeter threats. Advertisement Even though the Lakers were too shorthanded to cause real problems on Thursday, Luka Doncic scored 45 points with relative ease. On Tuesday, Tyrese Haliburton regularly broke the Bucks down off the dribble and created open 3s for his teammates, but the Pacers just missed those open shots. Far too often, this was the type of shot the Bucks surrendered against the Pacers: 'I didn't think we controlled the ball,' Rivers said of the Bucks' poor defense against the Pacers. 'I think they had nine or 11 3s with 10 feet of distance (between the shooter and closest defender) and that can't happen obviously.' 'Driving away from our help, which we have to channel everything to our help, and we just haven't done that. We've done a great job of that over the last six, eight weeks and the last three games in a row, we've not done it and so we showed that on film.' Even on the possessions where the Bucks managed to get the ballhandler to dribble into the Bucks' waiting help defenders, the rest of the rotations were so poorly executed that the Pacers still got open shots on Tuesday. The Bucks are going to get another chance at the Pacers on Saturday. They will need to be much better at the point of attack defensively. Indiana is among the NBA's best attacking teams and Haliburton is spectacular at finding the weak spots in a defense, so this will be another strong test for the viability of the Bucks' unorthodox defensive personnel in the postseason. Sign up to get The Bounce, the essential NBA newsletter from Zach Harper and The Athletic staff, delivered free to your inbox. (Photo of Austin Reaves and Taurean Prince: Stacy Revere / Getty Images)
