PG Hawks - KPJ, Kuzma Spark Win

[-Jragon-]

KPJ and Dame are not even in the top five Bucks off balls guys. They are both guys who are best utilized with the ball in their hands. Problem is, there is only one ball.

We saw just last night why you want Dame with the ball and not off ball. Bucks up five and they run three straight possessions of Giannis ISO post ups on the left side and they fail to score which leads to a tied game. Then they run Dame/Giannis PnR, Dame dishes to Giannis who finds Brook cutting to the rim for a dunk. Next possession, Dame gets a switch on the pick and gets all the way to the rim for that fantastic layup.

Giannis can thrive off ball because he maintains his gravity and he can screen/roll. Plus he is absolutely the guy you want with the ball if the other team wants to trap Dame and let the Bucks play 4 on 3. And the guy Dame is kicking it to in that spot is often the guy who set the screen. You want to screen with a bigger guy to create potential mismatches or a guy who can pick and pop like AJG or Trent to get them open looks. What advantage is gained if KPJ screens for Dame? There is no need to trap that when it’s an easy switch.

KPJ off ball is less effective than Trent, AJG, Prince, and even Brook because he is not as high percentage on catch and shoot threes. Kuz is probably better than him off ball because he is a fantastic cutter and generally big target.

Teams are more than happy to let Dame and KPJ be catch and shoot only guys. It’s the opposite of playing to their strengths. Does no one remember how up in arms the site was when Grief was using Dame as a stand in the corner guy?

On balls off balls..... balls... you might be right but.... Doc, please let us see it soon. Let's just see, I think they can play off each other back and forth with good ball movement. If we hero ball then yeah there's no point. But let them double Dame high and Give KPJ a 4 on 3... dare you.. his drive and kick is what we want

[Ron Swanson]

Dame's at 40.1% on catch and shoot 3's this season.

[tedbrogen]

KPJ and Dame are not even in the top five Bucks off balls guys. They are both guys who are best utilized with the ball in their hands. Problem is, there is only one ball.

We saw just last night why you want Dame with the ball and not off ball. Bucks up five and they run three straight possessions of Giannis ISO post ups on the left side and they fail to score which leads to a tied game. Then they run Dame/Giannis PnR, Dame dishes to Giannis who finds Brook cutting to the rim for a dunk. Next possession, Dame gets a switch on the pick and gets all the way to the rim for that fantastic layup.

Giannis can thrive off ball because he maintains his gravity and he can screen/roll. Plus he is absolutely the guy you want with the ball if the other team wants to trap Dame and let the Bucks play 4 on 3. And the guy Dame is kicking it to in that spot is often the guy who set the screen. You want to screen with a bigger guy to create potential mismatches or a guy who can pick and pop like AJG or Trent to get them open looks. What advantage is gained if KPJ screens for Dame? There is no need to trap that when it’s an easy switch.

KPJ off ball is less effective than Trent, AJG, Prince, and even Brook because he is not as high percentage on catch and shoot threes. Kuz is probably better than him off ball because he is a fantastic cutter and generally big target.

Teams are more than happy to let Dame and KPJ be catch and shoot only guys. It’s the opposite of playing to their strengths. Does no one remember how up in arms the site was when Grief was using Dame as a stand in the corner guy?

On balls off balls..... balls... you might be right but.... Doc, please let us see it soon. Let's just see, I think they can play off each other back and forth with good ball movement. If we hero ball then yeah there's no point. But let them double Dame high and Give KPJ a 4 on 3... dare you.. his drive and kick is what we want

Again, the scenario you are envisioning won’t occur. If KPJ screens for Dame, teams will just switch it and still be comfortable with their matchups. They won’t trap Dame needlessly. Thus, no 4 on 3 will be created.

They trap Dame when a big screens for him because they don’t want to switch that, they know hedge and recover won’t work since he can pass over the top to the big, they know trying to fight over the screen let’s Dame dribble into a three or the lane, so the trap hoping it forces a turnover.

Please watch how teams vary their coverage based on who screens for Dame. It’s not always a trap. Not all screens for Dame automatically create the 4 on 3.

That’s before getting into that you’d still rather have Giannis with the ball in a 4 on 3 than KPJ. Giannis attacking the rim with a numbers advantage is all time great levels of efficiency. He’s just as good a passer as KPJ and a MUCH better finisher.

[tedbrogen]

Dame's at 40.1% on catch and shoot 3's this season.

So run KPJ/Giannis PnR with Dame offball? I’d just go under that Giannis screen and dare KPJ to chuck threes from top of the key. What’s his off the dribble three percentage? Guessing you’d be less efficient running that than just running a Dame/Giannis PnR but presumably KPJ’s catch and shoot numbers are not good. Too lazy to look it up though.

[Ron Swanson]

I'm baffled as to why KPJ has basically become allergic to shooting 3's, but it was more a defense of Dame against the notion that he's not an optimal off-ball player. Even that narrative is disintegrating the more and more they're utilizing him off those curl screens. Don't really think that KPJ is an ideal off-ball guy, but I'd at least need to see him up his 3PT volume before we can really tell.

[raferfenix]

KPJ if he keeps his head on straight could easily be a Crawford/LouWill/Clarkson type guy for 10 years. Those guys were valuable and contributors to winning teams. But just have to keep them in the right role (and salary slot), try to elevate them a level and they're ppg tank commanders on bad teams

Agree but if KPJ’s defense holds out that’s a different tier of potential role player.

[DingleJerry]

He seems to have shot fine at 3 prior to this year so I wouldn't rule him out on it so quickly. In general, if he's as good as D as ya'll are describing there might get to a point where you'd rather have him in the closing lineup than any of the other SG/wings. For years we've lacked guys who can triple threat drive attack. Sure not as pure spot as Green/Prince/Trent but he adds that attack the closeout element those guys lack (though Trent is fine at it too), while also being good at D with great athleticism/speed. A small ball with GA/Dame/Kuzma/KPJ + one of the other better spot up 3 shooter wings should score plenty.

They have a lot of games to sort it out, and maybe an injury will dictate some of it

[fansinceforever]

Dame's at 40.1% on catch and shoot 3's this season.

So run KPJ/Giannis PnR with Dame offball? I’d just go under that Giannis screen and dare KPJ to chuck threes from top of the key. What’s his off the dribble three percentage? Guessing you’d be less efficient running that than just running a Dame/Giannis PnR but presumably KPJ’s catch and shoot numbers are not good. Too lazy to look it up though.

You're ignoring that teams going to do everything they can to blitz the hell out of Dame and take the ball out of his hand.

It will help to have another ball handler on the floor. He can be more useful than 12-15 backup mins a game and those other guys will still play. GTJ or Prince will be standing on the wing or the corner waiting for a pass which is really the extent of what they should be asked to do in the playoffs.

[GoldenAntlers]

Porter's been a lot of fun, but I think Doc has been wise to limiting him to the minutes he's received. Every possession is an adventure. I suppose some of the mis-connections is just working with new guys and their idiosyncrasies, but he's prone to some headscratchers that can't be explained away. Can get his offense, but is still trying to figure out how to run the offense for others. Once again, his running mates are, ahem, limited, but he can't be hanging out just shy of the center line.

Now, if he make headway on those points...ayyyyyyyyye.

For sure.

An encouraging aspect is that many of his head scratchers are in the name of "good team ball" and trying to get others involved. Some are self-inflicted, but many will be relieved with chemical advancements and the application of glue.

[old skool]

I don't know about "likely", but if we're healthy and fail to make it past the 2nd round, then everything sans Giannis should be on the table. Coach, GM, roster spots 2-15. Everything.

Is it realistic to expect that the Bucks should beat Cleveland or Boston in a seven game series? That will most likely be their 2nd round opponent should they win in round one. I would expect either Cavs or Celtics would be heavily favored against the Bucks. They are both undefeated against Milwaukee this season. They both have better records. They both are higher rated in in every ranking I see.

I think the Bucks should make every move available to improve the team. Everything should be on the table every year. But I don't think a second round exit justifies change for the sake of change if a change does not improve the team.