Ice-cold shooting can’t be weathered
MIAMI - There is an expectation in the NBA that weekend afternoon games, especially in cities like Miami, have a higher likelihood of leading to a sub-optimal product on the court.
The contest between the Milwaukee Bucks and Miami Heat lived up to that billing in the first half Sunday afternoon as neither team played particularly well. Each shot under 37% at halftime, a mark that put the Bucks on pace for their worst shooting game of the season.
Then the second half started and the Heat began to wake up. The Bucks, on the other hand, went from bad to worse in a 97-79 loss at American-Airlines Arena. The defeat featured Milwaukee’s worst shooting performance of the season at 31.6%, eclipsing its previous nadir of 37.8% in Dallas on Nov. 18.
“They started to score and we just couldn’t and so we were playing from behind,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. “We have some guys that just can’t make shots right now. We’ve just got to keep grinding it out, keep getting those guys a look and believe they’re going to make the next shot.”
Milwaukee especially couldn’t get anything going on offense in the third period. The Bucks went without a field goal for nearly 41⁄2 minutes, and even that first bucket — a three-pointer by Malcolm Brogdon — wasn’t an opportunity created as much as it was one seized, with Eric Bledsoe missing a layup and corralling the rebound before pushing it out to Brogdon in the corner.
That shot returned the Bucks to the two-point lead they had at halftime after the two teams had traded misses to open the half. Heat guard Tyler Johnson immediately responded in kind and thanks in large part to turnovers, the Bucks stayed behind for good.
Miami embarked on a 14-0 run over the next four minutes as Milwaukee followed up Brogdon’s triple with a pair of giveaways. The Bucks then clanked a pair of three-pointers — part of a 1-for-9 quarter and a season-worst 4-for-28 (14.3%) game — before committing three more turnovers in a row.
Bledsoe threw a kick-out pass to the stands then Giannis Antetokounmpo was called for an illegal screen before having a pass stolen by Hassan Whiteside.
“It’s just being careless,” Kidd said. “Again, when you don’t get shots or you can’t make shots you’re going to play from behind and that’s what happened there in the third.”
Whiteside, who had 15 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks, turned that steal into a dunk that put the Heat ahead by 10. The Bucks cut the margin to single digits only once the rest of the
way as they opened the second half of the season with a loss.
“We played bad basketball,” Antetokounmpo said. “Usually when we don’t make shots we try to do it ourselves. That’s what I think at some points tonight happened.”
Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 22 points on 6-of-12 shooting while going 10-of-10 from the free-throw line. Khris Middleton continued his shooting slump, going 3 of 16 from the field, including missing nine straight, for 16 points. Bledsoe wasn’t much better, going 4 of 16 and missing all six of his three-point attempts.
The only Bucks player who had any regular success was Brogdon, who went 7 of 12 for 15 points. Milwaukee’s six bench players combined for 12 points on 3-of-18 shooting.
Coming off two of their five worst shooting games, the Bucks will need to bounce back Monday against the Washington Wizards in another early game. The Bucks beat the Wizards on the second game of a back-to-back Jan. 6 and will be aiming for a similar result.
Asked if the recent offensive struggles, especially Sunday’s season-low shooting percentage, could serve as a wake-up call, Antetokounmpo expressed that he was more affected by the loss than any specific stat.
“I don’t look at the stats,” he said. “A loss is a loss. This is a game that we needed and we lost it. That’s a wake-up call to me. It’s not how many shots we make or how many shots we miss as a team.”
BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
Slumping Middleton: Over the past two games, both Bucks losses, Middleton has been in an offensive funk. He went 2 of 12 from the field Friday against the Golden State Warriors before finishing Sunday at 3 of 16.
The cumulative numbers from those games are staggering for an established shooter like Middleton, who is near 40% from three-point range over his six seasons. In two games, he’s 5 of 28 (17.9%) from the field and 2 of 13 (15.4%) from three-point range, mostly on open looks.
“Just mired in one of those slumps, man,” Middleton said. “I just feel like I’m relying too much on my three-point shot instead of just getting to my spot. I’ve just got to keep shooting with confidence. I’m getting wide-open shots, just got to knock them down.”
Averaging 37.1 minutes per contest heading into Sunday — second-most in the league behind Antetokounmpo — it’s fair to question if the high workload is taking a toll on his body. Middleton, who played 36.1 minutes per game in 2015-’16, says it’s not bothering him.
“I don’t think so, necessarily,” he said. “The way I play, I don’t put too much pounding on my body. In the minutes I play I’m able to withstand it. I’m not a high-flyer like Giannis or a driver — I’m more of a shooter, getting to my spots and pulling up, which doesn’t take too much of a toll on my body. So I wouldn’t say the minutes are affecting my game too much.”
However, he does admit that this season has brought new challenges. He’s spent more time playing the four (power forward) position this season, which means playing an altered role on offense and battling bigger players inside more often on defense.
South Beach, bringing the heat: When it comes to the prospect of a night in Miami having a negative impact on the Bucks, both Kidd and multiple players rejected that premise. Kidd noted that the team didn’t have enough time to get sidetracked by the city’s nightlife after arriving around 6 p.m. Saturday.
Middleton said with a game as early as Sunday’s, players are smart enough to make the right decisions.
“It was a ballgame at halftime,” Middleton said. “Guys are smart. It was an early game, there’s no way you can be out in Miami at 3, 4, 5 a.m. then expect to get here at 10 a.m. and play a game. (People) can say what they want, but guys are smarter than that. You have the summertime, you have different times when you can do that.”
UP NEXT
Teams: Milwaukee Bucks (22-20) at Washington Wizards (25-18).
When: 1 p.m. Monday.
Where: Capital One Arena.
About the Wizards: Washington opened its five-game homestand with a 110-103 loss to Milwaukee on Jan. 6 and will close that stretch of home games with another visit from the Bucks for a Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee. The Wizards are coming off an overtime win over the Brooklyn Nets in which they blew a 23-point lead before hanging on for the win thanks in large part to 23 points and 16 assists from John Wall and 24 points from Bradley Beal.