Jim Owczarski on the Bucks' loss to Indiana in the in-season tournament
Jim Owczarski describes his impressions of the Milwaukee Bucks in Las Vegas during their in-season tournament loss to Indiana
After a few days off, the Milwaukee Bucks return to action on Monday night at Fiserv Forum against the Chicago Bulls. The Bucks (15-7) are looking to bounce back not only from a loss to Indiana in Las Vegas in the semifinals of the in-season tournament on Thursday night, but also from a surprising overtime loss to the Bulls (9-14) on March 30. November United Center.
That was the start of Chicago's current four-game winning streak.
Brook Lopez scored 10 points on 4 of 6 shooting in the first quarter to give the Bucks a 37-32 lead. All five starters scored a goal for Milwaukee and Bobby Portis added eight more after coming off the bench. DeMar DeRozan and Coby White each had nine for Chicago.
Is Giannis playing?
Yes. Giannis Antetokounmpo starts for the Bucks.
Alex Caruso is out for the Bulls
Guard Alex Caruso tested out his sprained left ankle before the game but was ultimately ruled out by Chicago. Caruso hit a three-pointer against Brook Lopez at the end of regulation that gave the Bulls an overtime victory over the Bucks on November 30th.
Bucks injury report
- Pat Connaughton is out (right ankle sprain)Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin said Connaughton will work on court Monday and hopes to return to action in about a week. Connaughton sprained his ankle against Miami on November 29th.
- Jae Crowder is out (left adductor surgery)
- Chris Livingston, out (left ankle sprain)Griffin said the rookie injured his ankle during his G League stint with the Wisconsin Herd.
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Bucks starting lineup
- Guards: Damian Lillard, Malik Beasley
- Forward: Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo
- Center: Brook Lopez
Bobby Portis and Adrian Griffin discuss a locker room conversation after the in-season loss to the Pacers
Several Bucks players left Las Vegas somewhat disillusioned with the end of their 128-119 loss to the Pacers. Antetokounmpo pointed to a general lack of organization on offense and said players need to perform better moving forward. Lillard and Middleton had a breakdown in which the ball was turned over at a crucial point, and both spoke of being better in that situation.
A Bleacher Report report late Thursday said Bobby Portis interrupted head coach Adrian Griffin's postgame address to the team and urged the coach and team to get better.
Both Griffin and Portis addressed the report after practice on Sunday:
Griffin: “I will not comment on what has been reported. We are a passionate group. We hate to lose. The internal dialogue happens in our locker room, it stays in our locker room. But we had a great, great training today. Probably one of the best workouts we've ever had. I love the atmosphere in the gym. Great energy. Then we just get ready for Chicago.
Portis: “I don’t want to talk too much about what’s happening in our locker room. What happens in our dressing room is simply sacred between us. It's always been that way. I don't know how it was reported. But at least.” At the same time man, just a competitor. I love competing. I think I'm a leader. I lead with my voice and I also lead by example. Just a few things that I've grown over the course of my career and my time here. I've been here over 1,000 days now, so the boys know me, the boys know who I am. They know I wear my heart on my sleeve. I compete in high-level competitions every day. Shots fall in or not, whether I play well or not, I'm here to make the team better. So just being a leader, being a voice and representing everyone else's opinion outside of our team, that's just their opinions about me or our team. I’m here for the right reasons.”
Giannis was named to the season's first All-Tournament team
The Bucks' run in Las Vegas ended early with a semifinal loss to Indiana on Thursday, but Antetokounmpo was named to the all-tournament team for his performances in the six games the team played in the in-season tournament.
He was joined by tournament MVP LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant and Oshkosh native Tyrese Haliburton.
Antetokounmpo averaged 29 points per game on 64.6% shooting in the Bucks' tournament games. He also averaged 8.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists.