2010-11 Season Previews: Milwaukee Bucks

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The NBA Season is fast upon us, so its time for the Pick and Scroll to begin previewing each team.  We're going to go in order from worst previous record to best.  Milwaukee was one of last season's surprise teams, but have they improved enough to hang with the heavy hitters in the East?

2009-10 Record: 46-36
Additions: Corey Maggette (Trade), Chris Douglas-Roberts (Trade), Jon Brockman (Trade), Larry Sanders (Draft), Darington Hobson (Draft), Drew Gooden (FA), Keyon Dooling (FA), Earl Boykins (FA)
Subtractions: Dan Gadzuric, Charlie Bell, Luke Ridnour, Kurt Thomas, Royal Ivey, Primoz Brezec, Darnell Jackson, Jerry Stackhouse


Milwaukee had a resurgent season last year, reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2006, thanks to some great defense, career years from Andrew Bogut, Carlos Delfino and Luke Ridnour, the acquisition of John Salmons to provide a scoring punch, the drafting of Brandon Jennings, and the return of Ersan Ilyasova.  After a middling start and losing Michael Redd to yet another season ending knee injury, Milwaukee kicked it up a notch and almost beat the Hawks in the first round, taking them to 7 games and even taking a 3-2 series lead.  They might have won too, if they hadn't lost Andrew Bogut to a broken right hand a few weeks prior.

Milwaukee did not stop at trying to get better this offseason, aggressively upping their overall talent level.  The only players of any real basketball value they lost this offseason were Luke Ridnour (whose career year might've been a fluke), and Kurt Thomas (a reliable backup center).  The Bucks definitely looked to upgrade their offense this summer (they were only 23rd, acquiring Corey Maggette and Chis Douglas-Roberts through trades, both wings who look to create their own offense.  Along with Salmons and Jennings, the Bucks should have no problem creating shots this season.  Whether they're good shots or not is another question.  They're is also the question of whether Maggette and CDR can learn to become good team players and defenders, as most of their combined experience has been with bad teams.

Something else the Bucks really lacked last year was size and strength inside.  Bogut is a true center, but at the Power Forward spot the Bucks often relied on Tweeners like Delfino, Ilyasova or Mbah a Moute.  This year they looked to change that, signing Drew Gooden (some would say they overpaid, and I think he's fairly priced for the first year or two of his contract and then he'll be overpaid), drafting Larry Sanders and sign-and-trading for Jon "The Brock Ness Monster" Brockman.  Gooden provides solid production and can play either the 4 or 5, good for a Bucks team that still isn't sure how healthy Bogut will be.  Sanders wowed in the Summer League with his tenacity on defense, and Brockman proved to be one of the toughest, best rebounding (especially on the offensive glass) hombres in the NBA last year as a rookie. 

Boykins and Dooling are both capable backups, and while they might not be as good as Ridnour was last year, they're much cheaper, and hopefully Jennings will improve enough to make up the difference.  The biggest thing Brandon needs to improve is his efficiency.  He was one of the best creators and defenders of the point guard crop last year, but while his 3P% was at a decent .374, his FG% was an atrocious .371.  If he can improve that and become more efficient, he'll be one of the more devasting two-way point guards in the league.

Also at this point its clear the Bucks have no more faith in Michael Redd to stay healthy, with all the people ahead of him in the rotation.  The only value he has to them is as a massive expiring contract, which will either be traded or simply expire giving the Bucks some big time relief next season (although not too much after this summer's spending spree).

The Bucks are definitely on the rise, being one of the deepest teams I can think of. Ersan Ilyasova, if he comes off the bench, will definitely challenge for 6th man of the year, and I also wouldn't be surprised to see Larry Sanders make one of the rookie teams after his summer showing, although he'll have to fight for minutes.  It all depends on the man in the middle though, as it does for many teams.  If Bogut can come back and have another year like he did last year, but this time be 100% for the playoffs, this will be the team that nobody wants to play, much like Houston in the West.  I am going to give Milwaukee the edge on Chicago for winning the Central Division, and don't be suprised if you see them in the Eastern Conference Finals this year.  That's the absolute best case scenario, because this team has a lot of heart and talent, a good combination.

Projected Win Range: 48-53