Buck Up! - Milwaukee Bucks -

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NBA News

Central Standings
Cleveland Cavaliers (13-5) .722% - GB
Chicago Bulls (12-5) .706% 0.5 GB
Indiana Pacers (11-6) .647% 1.5 GB
Milwaukee Bucks (8-7) .533% 3.5 GB
Detroit Pistons (6-11) .353% 6.5 GB

The Milwaukee Bucks managed to pull out a small winstreak that allowed them to as a team drift above .500 but it's a dangerous time for the squad, they are the only team in the central with a negative point differential and that is a frightening trend.

Current Playoff Seedings

EAST - RNK - WEST
Cleveland (13-5) - 1 - Dallas (14-3)
Atlanta (12-5) - 2 - Oklahoma City (12-5)
Chicago (12-5) - 3 - Utah (11-5)
Toronto (8-9) - 4 - Golden State (10-6)
Indiana (11-6) - 5 - Houston (11-7)
Miami (9-7) - 6 - Portland (10-7)
Milwaukee (8-7) - 7 - Los Angeles (10-7)
Toronto (8-9) - 8 - New Orleans (8-7)

Player of the Month
East - LeBron James (SF) Cleveland Cavaliers
West - Stephen Curry (PG) Golden State Warriors

Injuries
Marcus Morris (SF) PHX - Fractured Leg - Out for Season
Nerlens Noel (PF) PHI - Broken Ankle - Out for Season
Kevin Love (PF) CLE - Broken Foot - Out for 2 Months
Goran Dragic (PG) ORL - Torn Calf Muscle - Out for 1 Month

Transactions
Nuggets extend Danilo Gallinari and Javale McGee for 3 years; Arron Afflalo for 2 years
Nets add a year to Joe Johnson's contract.
Wizards sign Kosta Papanikolaou to a 1 year deal

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Milwaukee Bucks update through first half of December

December 1st, 2015
vs Cleveland Cavaliers L 97-110
Cleveland came in without Kevin Love, but a strong record regardless and they would walk away with another victory under their belt by beating the Bucks with a 13 point disparity. Four of the Bucks players made it to double digit points, and for the first time, all of the front court. Lance Stephenson struggled with this one, shooting .300 from the field and the only starter to yield without breaking that double digit barrier. Kyrie Irving and LeBron James each put in 40 minutes of work and both finished with 37 and 30 points respectively to carry the team despite almost no help from any other player. Justise Winslow had a strong performance with 14 points and 4 rebounds.

December 3rd, 2015
vs Philadelphia 76ers W 107-103
The Bucks met the 76ers again and the result was much of the same, but this time; the Sixers were led by a player that reportedly was very high on the Bucks boards, Chris LeVert piled up 21 points for the 76ers. Ersan Ilyasova piled in a double double with 12 points and 14 rebounds and John Henson had 9 points and 8 rebounds against their former team. Jabari Parker and Larry Sanders led the Bucks charge with 20 and 18 points, while Sanders had another block while six Bucks broke double digits.

December 4th, 2015
@ Boston Celtics L 101-116
Jared Sullinger dominated in the post and managed to shoot 5-7 from beyond the arc as the Celtics bombed away at the Bucks from deep mid range and beyond the arc, Emmanuel Mudiay hit 6-7 from deep. Jabari Parker did his part, but struggled in a big way from beyond the arc, 6 of his 20 points came from three on 2-9 shooting. Lance Stephenson posted a double double in one of his better performances since joining the Bucks (14 PTS - 11 AST ).

December 7th, 2015
@ New York Knicks W 102-79
The Bucks got the weekend off and started the work week off on the right foot by blowing out the New York Knicks. Carmelo Anthony had 24 points and JR Smith was the only other player of note for the Knicks, Smith had 10 points and 6 rebounds, as the second highest performer and leading rebounder. For the first time in several games, Jabari Parker finished outside of the highest performer, as Lance Stephenson dominated, 23 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Jimmer Fredette added 22 points and 5 rebounds and was perfect (4-4) from beyond the arc.

December 8th, 2015
vs Boston Celtics W 104-82
The rest seemed to fire up the Bucks which blew out their second team in as many days, and ironically Jabari Parker played a short game and had his worst performance to date, but the team came together with Lance Stephenson leading the way with 22 points and 7 rebounds. Kristnap Porzingis had a strong game with 15 points. Tristan Thompson had a season high 14 rebounds despite only scoring 5 to help key this victory. The Celtics young back court scored only 15 points; shut down in this matchup.

December 10th, 2015
@ Denver Nuggets W 104-93
Three blow outs in a row as the Bucks continue one of their best weeks in the season, shutting down the Denver Nuggets, who are on an eight game losing streak. Ty Lawson led the team with 20 points and 7 assists whle Kenneth Faried had 18 points ad 11 rebounds. Tristan Thompson had a huge game, with 22 points and 8 rebounds, while Jabari Parker scores 7 as he struggles yet again, but gets a lot of time to relax in this matchup only playing 20 minutes.

December 11th, 2015
@ New Orleans Pelicans L 85-94
The Pelicans have only lost twice at home this season and today wouldn't be one of the pair. The Pelicans big three of Monta Ellis, Jrue Holiday and Anthony Davis played up to their expectations with Anthony Davis having the best overall performance. His 18 points and 16 rebounds, accompanying his 4 swats had the Bucks at ends. Kristnap Porzingis had a strong game and the pressure is building on Tristan Thompson who himself had a solid game with 16 points and 5 rebounds.

Monday, December 14th
vs Orlando Magic L105-110 OT
The Orlando Magic rallied with Karl Anthony-Towns spearheading the furious rally with 18 points including 10 in the final quarter and overtime to help the Magic eclipse the Bucks, the Magic had an excellent team performance as seven of the ten players in this game had double digit scoring to lead them to victory. Rajon Rondo had his best overall performance with a 24 point, 12 assist double double, adding 8 rebounds and 3 steals. Tristan Thompson added a double double of his own, but it wouldn't be nearly enough for the Bucks who allowed a double digit lead to fade.

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Bucks news

- The Bucks will be without Nate Wolters for two weeks with a hyper extended knee

- The Bucks have announced that Kristaps Porzingis will be starting at power forward.

- Rumors are swirling that the Bucks are willing to deal several players include Lance Stephenson, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tristan Thompson and Larry Sanders if the move is lucrative, but will likely wait until the trade deadline to determine what would be the best choice; if any

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Kristaps Porzingis pulls up for a late two in Bucks win over Hornets

MIL 26 21 23 27 97
NO 28 15 16 22 81

Defense; bench steps up in Bucks victory

(Milwaukee, WI) - The Bucks smothered the Hornets for the final three periods to hide their offensive deficiencies. Ironically as a team, the Bucks shot at 47% from the field and that number slipped below .333 from beyond the arc. No Bucks player finished below 1 in the +/- column, each player outscoring the opposition when on the court.

"Team defense at it's finest, this was a display of what our defense can accomplish and we managed to score quite a bit, which always helps boost our spirits. I'm completely happy with the teams performance." Spoke Jason Kidd to reporters gathered after the game, a rare smile on the coaches face.

Jimmer Fredette had more points (19) than minutes (17), and led the team in that regard, while Jabari Parker had 17 points and 6 rebounds, Kristaps Porzingis had 10 points and 9 rebounds in his first start, including a few big shots to stop runs, and he led the team with 4 offensive rebounds, no easy feat in any regard. Andrew Harrison had a rather efficient performance with six points and two assists with only seven minutes of action.

For the otherside, Al Jefferson who is ailing with a broken hand, was a pure bright spot for the Hornets. 17 Points and 18 Rebounds. Kemba Walker quietly had 17 points, despite largely being shut down and only notching four assists and a pair of rebounds otherwise while adding 5 turnovers. Speaking of which, the Bucks had fewer turnovers (10) than the Hornets (14).

The Charlotte Hornets fall to 10-15, a hugely disappointing season as the team is imploding. The Hornets are losing the season series 0-2 to the Bucks this season. The Milwaukee Bucks improve to 13-11 and have the New York Knicks (6-17) next on the schedule. The Bucks last played New York, in New York and won by 23, and experts expect a similar result, but the Knicks are currently riding a two game win streak.

Milwaukee Bucks Starting Five
Rajon Rondo (PG) 11 PTS 3 REB 9 AST 5 STL 1 BLK
Lance Stephenson (SG) 16 PTS 3 REB 6 AST 1 STL 1 BLK
Jabari Parker (SF) 17 PTS 6 REB 1 AST 1 STL 1 BLK
Kristaps Porzingis (PF) 10 PTS 9 REB
Larry Sanders (C) 5 PTS 11 REB 4 AST 3 STL

Charlotte Hornets Top Performer
Al Jefferson (PF) 17 PTS 18 REB 1 AST

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Lance Stephenson scrambles to the basket; he would be fouled.

MIL 20 27 23 28 98
NYK 20 25 18 28 91

Porzingis leads Bucks past scrappy Knicks

(Milwaukee, WI) - The Bucks couldn't seem to put down the Knicks, the Knicks kept themselves alive with scrappy play. Forcing four of their ten turnovers in the final two minutes, a fifteen point lead deteriorated to two, before finally being blown back open to seven and the Knicks never recovered. The Knicks kept bringing themselves back into the race and in the fourth quarter, the bench helped bring the score to an even standpoint, forcing the Bucks to keep their starting five in, luckily, for a minute in crunch time, the bench came up big. Willie Cauley-Stein forcefully rejected a Carmelo Anthony lay up and Andrew Harrison gathered up the wildly deflected the ball, charging down court and taking a big hit from Tim Hardaway Jr., he would score and get a free throw. Knocking in the free throw gave the Bucks a five point lead.

The Knicks couldn't recover, and with a little over a minute, another platoon swap occurred and starters locked down the Knicks, Hardaway Jr. would toss up a three and miss, with Amare Stoudemire bringing in the offensive rebound and dishing the ball back out to Hardaway Jr., who would miss again. Larry Sanders brought in the rebound and tossed the ball into the air, to burn out the last of the clock and churn out the hard 98-91 victory over the Knicks.

Kristaps Porzingis scores 20 and leads the team, adding 8 rebounds and a block to help a strong performance, the move to start him paid off it's dividends. Rajon Rondo added 19 and Jabari Parker had 17. Larry Sanders would be shut out, but get 11 rebounds and 2 steals. The starting line up is in flux, as Jason Kidd seeks to cycle through players and develop the best possible starting tandem, Tristan Thompson was already shown to the bench and if Sanders once again skids like he did in the early going, he could be shown to the bench as well.

Carmelo Anthony scored 23 points on over .500 shooting, no points scored from beyond the arc and only making one shot from the charity stripe, and adding 12 rebounds for a double double, he got a lot of help from the bench when Terry Rozier III burst for a quick 14 in five minutes in the fourth quarter, his scoring keeping the Knicks knotted with the Bucks and forcing the team to keep their starters to stay in.

"They didn't give up, that kind of effort is something any coach would love to see and they gave us all we could handle. We won, but it's a testament that regardless of record, any team can win on any given day if their effort level is there. We didn't let up when they pushed, our guys stayed strong, I give a lot of credit to our starters playing ten minutes in the fourth, and the two minutes the bench played, they were absolutely phenomenal, allowing no points and building a small lead!" Spoke Jason Kidd.

The Milwaukee Bucks improve to 14-11 on the season, on the bright end of a two game streak. The Memphis Grizzlies sit at 7-18 on the season and are 2-10 on the road. This would be the first meeting of the two teams this season, and the Grizzlies are on a four game losing streak. The Grizzlies are on a tailspin, after being projected as a Western Conference contender.

Milwaukee Bucks Starting Five
Rajon Rondo (PG) 19 PTS 3 REB 6 AST 1 STL
Lance Stephenson (SG) 13 PTS 4 REB 6 AST 1 STL 2 BLK
Jabari Parker (SF) 17 PTS 7 REB 4 AST 3 STL 2 BLK
Kristaps Porzingis (PF) 20 PTS 8 REB 2 AST 1 BLK
Larry Sanders (C) 11 REB 3 AST 2 STL

New York Knicks Top Performer
Carmelo Anthony (SF) 23 PTS 12 REB 5 AST 2 STL

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MIL 20 22 24 23 89
MEM 24 25 24 23 96

Jordan Adams leads Grizzlies past Bucks

Jordan Adams hit his first ten shots and would finish 12-18 as he scored 31 in a career high performance that propelled the Grizzlies to a rare win streak on the season. The Grizzlies had very high expectations for the season, but haven't lived up to any semblance of those goals, sitting over eleven games out of first place just two months into the season, but they are starting to get a little more traction.

Jabari Parker led the way for the Milwaukee Bucks, with 20 points and 5 rebounds. Kristaps Porzingis had sixteen points and 13 rebounds, absolutely warranting all of the preseason hype around the European sensation, and Willie Cauley-Stein had four blocks in some key plays as he would be shut out on very few shots. Jimmer Fredette struggled mightily, going 0-5 in the second quarter, and Rajon Rondo couldn't get much going, finishing 2-7 from the field, finishing with just six and having eight assists. Tristan Thompson only scored once but had nine rebounds in limited action.

This was a back and fourth affair with Jordan Adams largely extending the Grizzlies leads, growing them as big as eleven points before the Bucks managed to thunder back, and it would go until the final two minutes when Porzingis drained a wide open mid range jumper to knot the game up, but from there, they would allow Zach Randolph an offensive rebound and put back to give the lead, and on their following possession, not even two offensive rebounds and numerous attempts on basket could give them the score. From there, one more basket and suddenly the foul game was on and it wouldn't go anywhere from there as the Bucks ceded to Grizzlies.

Milwaukee falls, but still holds a solid record at 14-12, albeit with a very rough stretch coming up against the Utah Jazz and Atlanta Hawks. The Memphis Grizzlies start slowly climbing towards .500, picking up their ninth win of the season to improve to 9-18 (.333). The Grizzlies still sit 6 games back from the 15-12 Los Angeles Clippers for the Eighth seed, but there is still a lot of season left.

Milwaukee Bucks Starting Five
Rajon Rondo (PG) 6 PTS 2 REB 8 AST 3 STL
Lance Stephenson (SG) 12 PTS 2 REB 8 AST 1 BLK
Jabari Parker (SF) 20 PTS 5 REB 4 AST 1 BLK
Kristaps Porzingis (PF) 16 PTS 13 REB 1 AST 1 BLK
Larry Sanders (C) 10 PTS 12 REB 1 STL 1 BLK

Memphis Grizzlies Top Performer
Jordan Adams (SG) 31 PTS 3 REB 1 AST 2 STL

[Number999]

Dude I loved the idea to start from the 2015 season change things up.

Although since I noticed it in my franchise to, is Jordan Adams oddly a straight up beast for the Memphis Grizzlies in your franchise? Found it really weird that for some reason the 22nd pick is just setting the league on fire, lol.

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In game, he absolutely dominated and made me rotate Rondo routinely to cover him as I had Jimmer Fredette playing extended time for his scoring ability and for some reason, Stephenson always got caught up on the picks and left him open. He was hitting almost everything, covered or not for the first three quarters, ironically in the fourth he went cold and that allowed us back in.

He's averaging 17.1 PPG (I looked, because I hadn't really heard of him before and was curious how his season was going), and I cannot remember his other stats.

I really cannot explain Memphis in this game. They are a 90 overall squad, but only hit 9 wins in the last week and a half of December. Their bench has Carlos Boozer and Kevin Garnett!