The Milwaukee Bucks having a rebounding downside is nothing new to followers. They have suffered via the frustration all season. The Bucks go one and performed on their very own finish, then permit a deluge of second-chance factors to their opponents.
It’s one area where, mockingly sufficient, the staff misses the contributions of Brook Lopez. Never an elite rebounder, the previous Bucks middle nonetheless mastered correct box-out method to create rebounding possibilities for himself and teammates. That’s an edge that does not present up in his personal field rating, but it surely has manifestly damage Milwaukee as a staff.
BTBP staff skilled Dalton Sell detailed his impact throughout an look on WTMJ.
“They are definitely missing Brook Lopez in that regard,” Sell stated of the group’s persistent rebounding flaws. “They were absolutely justified in trying to upgrade with Myles Turner, but he’s not that kind of interior presence. He’s not down low like Brook was. I know Brook was mostly out on the 3-point line, but … you’re missing out on a lot of those box outs.”
Lopez did not rack up particular person rebounds, however he made his presence felt
It could be straightforward to quote his rebounding numbers to argue in opposition to his rebounding affect, but it surely’s additionally considerably superficial in this context. While Lopez averaged solely 5 boards per recreation final season, and by no means greater than 6.7 per recreation in his Bucks profession, his bodily presence in the paint created higher rebounding alternatives for everybody round him.
With Turner, the roster has misplaced a few of Lopez’ method and savvy, walling off would-be offensive rebounders to provide himself and other Bucks defenders an opportunity. Lopez additionally spent lots of day out on the perimeter, however when he did find yourself inside, he offered a lift in staff rebounding oomph.
Even superficially talking, Turner is rebounding on the lowest per-minute price of his profession. Part of that, Sell notes, is his correspondingly low quantity of 2-point makes an attempt, limiting his time across the basket. Part of it may come from technical soundness and savvy. Most terrifying, it may very well be the symptom of an athletic decline.
It’s not only a Turner factor. It’s a staff concern. In Monday’s embarrassing defeat to Boston, the Bucks misplaced the offensive rebounding battle 19 to 9. The Celtics captured 35 % of their very own misses. Milwaukee reeled in underneath 20 % of its personal. Unless you are going to shoot 80 % from the sphere, that type of hole will resolve many video games proper there.
Bucks’ shortcomings on the boards are a collective flaw
Doc Rivers’ emphasis on wanting the staff to get again on protection in transition, one other sore spot Sell factors out, naturally suppresses their alternatives to crash the glass. That’s solely a part of the difficulty, after all. Jericho Sims is an outstanding rebounder, a significantly better one than Lopez, due to his athleticism. But he may get caught napping in relation to positioning, relying as a substitute on his pure hops to go up and snatch unfastened boards.
Finally, having Giannis Antetokounmpo again ought to assist lots, however the Bucks have struggled on the glass even with Giannis on the courtroom. Coming off a prolonged absence because of a calf harm, he may not have the identical vertical explosiveness in the early phases of his return.
The Greek Freak will not have the ability to save them single-handedly. Similar to Turner, Portis’ general effectiveness as a rebounder is down as effectively. Lapses in focus continue to plague the Bucks late in the season. Doing the little issues has been a gargantuan problem all yr lengthy.
All that isn’t to say that the Bucks had been unsuitable to maneuver on from Lopez, or that he’s a greater backup than Sims. What they’re lacking is his method and bodily solidity in securing possibilities on the glass. They could be higher than they’ve been, however the rebounding downside is not going away.
