Dellavedova’s time away was productive

For more than a month, left knee tendinitis lept Milwaukee Bucks point guard Matthew Dellavedova on the sideline. He spent that time doing various rehab exercises, aiming at building strength in that knee as well as the muscle groups in his leg surrounding it.

But he wasn’t just focused on himself. He was intently watching his teammates on the court, both finding ways to help them and considering ways he might be of use when back in action.

“I think when you’re away or not playing you get a bit of a different perspective on what is needed and how it looks out there because when you’re in it it’s a bit tougher to see sometimes,” Dellavedova said Tuesday at the Bucks’ Sports Science Center. “I was just trying to figure out what I was going to do when I came back and I think we found some things that have worked, especially for the second unit.”

After having his playing time limited in his first five games back, Dellavedova put some of those things into practice over Milwaukee’s past two games at Oklahoma City and Toronto. What stood out more than anything else was his passing, which picked apart both defenses — two of the best in the NBA — leading to 19 assists and just one turnover in nearly 54 minutes of action.

His 19 combined assists represent his highest two-game total since December 2016, interestingly enough with one of those games also coming against the Raptors.

“He’s a student of the game,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. “It showed last night being able to find the open guys and his toughness and getting guys open. We missed that. He makes the game easy with the pass . ... He’s one of our best screen-setters, he’s a guy that can find open guys, he’s very unselfish.”

Multiple Bucks players went out of their way to praise Dellavedova after his six-point, 10-assist night Monday in Toronto. There was a near-constant refrain of teammates pointing out how Dellavedova got guys in the right spots, especially on the offensive end, and moved the ball to the open man.

“He knew what the rotations were going to be, who the open guys were going to be and we just played off that,” Bucks wing Khris Middleton said.

Starting point guard Eric Bledsoe shared Middleton’s acclaim for Dellavedova.

“Delly, man, Delly he’s a terrific basketball player,” Bledsoe said. “His IQ is off the charts. When he’s in he just moves the ball, gets everybody involved, keeps everybody on the same page. He’s always talking out there so you need that.”

Dellavedova believes his impact comes down to the sets the Bucks have been running. He and his teammates know the sets and the options off of them and it’s up to him to read the defense and use what he’s learned from watching film and talking with teammates and coaches.