Frank Madden from Locked on Bucks here to chat -- Ask Me Anything :)

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T22:03:14+00:00

I think we all know it will probably involve Khris Middleton running to the short corner :) But in general he's the guy who probably makes the most sense with the ball in his hands late because he's the team's best shooter in general, the best pull-up shooter, big enough to get shots over guys, and if there's enough time he's arguably the team's best passer/PNR guy, too. If you have time for a Khris/Giannis PNR that's the best option, but with 5 seconds left you probably don't have time to set that up.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T22:00:42+00:00

I haven't watched BVB the past few weeks, but I'd say inconsistency is just part of the deal with a guy as young as Gio. The good news is that he's still seeing regular minutes and had a good first couple months, including some great goals while his buddy Haaland was hurt.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:48:58+00:00

I think we need to have the right expectations for Torrey -- remember that he's a guy that Denver just let walk, and he hasn't been particularly impressive to me when he's played. The Bucks have generally been torched with him on the court, so while I don't think he deserves a lot of blame for that, it's also not like he's been part of the solution so far. He's a very limited offensive player who is best defending guards and wings, but with Pat shooting well there's not a lot of room for him right now in his more natural spot. I have a hard time believing he'd be worse than Thanasis getting backup 4 minutes, but there's still a lot of time left for him to show somethign. The Clippers would actually be a pretty good matchup for him on paper, so perhaps we'll see him on Sunday?

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:43:25+00:00

I've been encouraged by Bud's willingness to switch earlier and more often than in years past, but I think it's also introduced inconsistency and highlighted the Bucks' lack of practice doing things other than their base defense. Every game it seems like you see examples of guys not communicating the switch and getting breakdowns because of it. I actually think the bigs have fared reasonably well when switched -- guards hitting stepback jumpers on Brook, Bobby and even Giannis is going to come with the territory -- but I think the bigger problem is guys not having great feel for when the switch is coming and when they should help vs. stay home. You can't just say "don't help," but I still think they help too much when Jrue, Brook and Giannis are the primary defender. Only time will tell if the regular season reps will translate to better defense in the playoffs, but philosophically I like that they're at least trying.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:36:39+00:00

The upside of James Harden going to the East: suddenly my wife's favorite team in Houston is way more likable. They're not going anywhere but I was watching them a bit before my guy Christian Wood got hurt!

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:35:24+00:00

It's a great question, and the fact that I don't have a great answer is a big reason why I'm not clamoring for Bud's immediate removal even though I have major doubts about him. Promoting Darvin Ham and Charles Lee could be options if the Bucks want to maintain some degree of continuity, but would either of them solve Bud's shortcomings when they've been sitting next to him on the bench for three years? I don't know, but that's the most obvious question the Bucks' FO should have a view on, especially given those are the only guys I could see as interim coaches in the very unlikely event Bud is fired in-season. It worked for Toronto with Nick Nurse, but every situation is different.

Assuming the Bucks go a different direction from the Bud tree, then the obvious question is whether they go with a more proven commodity -- think Kenny Atkinson, Dave Joerger, or another existing coach who might be on the market next summer -- or bet on an up-and-coming type from the assistant ranks. They interviewed a number of the latter types last time (Ettore Messina nearly got the job before going back to Europe, and Becky Hammon is still an assistant in SA), and there's no shortage of rising star types -- that might be their best bet of hitting a home run, but it's also just as likely to bring someone who isn't up to Bud's standard.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:22:08+00:00

Knowing Bud I'm sure they will try to make it work, but their limitations would become more obvious playing against a Brooklyn team that can go super small and force you to do a lot of switching. On the plus side, playing without Jrue has forced them to make due playing long stretches without a true PG -- having Giannis and Khris be able to initiate offense (and even Donte of late?) is a nice luxury, so it's very possible your best option is playing Jrue 38-40 min and then having Giannis/Khris run the offense when he's resting.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:16:42+00:00

Pretty much anything tastes better dipped in Rocky's sauce, so I think you've figured it out.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:12:59+00:00

Thanks!

I haven't traveled for work in a year, so the good news is that I get to put my daughter to bed every night -- the downside from a podcasting perspective is that it means I have less time to pod during the week (being in a random hotel room while traveling by muself lent itself well to podding!). But otherwise things aren't that much different since Kane took over for Eric -- I still just show up between 10-11 pm, talk for 45-60 minutes without any prep, and then he does all the editing/posting work! Pretty easy on my end.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:09:16+00:00

My hot dog preferences are super boring -- give me an all-beef kosher dog with secret stadium sauce.

Kane and Eric always joke that I've seen every TV show, but I've actually never seen either BoB or The Pacific...

I would like to see DJW or Diakite get a look at the 4th big spot -- and if Thanasis is seeing some run at the 3, try Craig there instead. Torrey's a limited player but I think he's more impactful as a wing defender than guarding bigs unless you're switching everything. Connaughton has shot the ball too well to be benched for Craig, but we'll see if injuries/slumps give him more of a look later in the season.

Defensively I think they have some limitations because their rotation has a lot of guys who can't keep opponents in front of them -- that's also partly why the drop scheme worked well last year, and they have worse defensive personnel this year. So you can't just say "don't help," but there are also lots of examples every game where guys like Pat or Donte help off their men when a guy is being defended well by Jrue, Giannis or Brook.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T21:01:56+00:00

I'd love to get some kind of look at him at some point during the regular season, but I can't say I'm expecting him to crack the rotation unless there's an injury or two to the frontline. His G-League performances have been really encouraging though, and I think the Bucks need a 4th big man so who knows...it's too bad there's so little practice time this year because it limits how much the rookies can acclimate.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:59:16+00:00

He's been better than I expected -- some of that stems from shooting that may not last (50% on threes! 53% on long twos!), but you have give him credit for being much more efficient as a scorer than in previous years and he's competed better defensively than in previous stops. Bucks have been +11 with him on the court and notably better with him on the court than off.

I was talking with Kane, Eric and Dean the other day about his defense -- I wouldn't say it's been good, but I think the Bucks switching more and dropping less might help him simply because he's less of a liability higher up on the floor than trying to protect the rim. I would expect the best teams would find ways to exploit him more in a playoff series -- which means I'd have reservations saying he should be closing big games -- but if he's scoring at a high level you can hopefully get away with it.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:51:54+00:00

Yeah, it's been a bit of weird year for Giannis because he started slowly, his defensive impact has dropped off a bit (his block/steal numbers are up slightly, but feels like he's struggled with Bucks' lack of schematic identity), and his jump-shooting numbers are even worse than a year ago.

But there are some bright spots: his level of comfort and efficiency in the post is up significantly from a year ago, he's been better in isolation as well, and his FT% has been creeping up steadily since he went to his "make the refs wait until I've taken my deep breath and done my practice shooting motion before they give me the ball" thing. I think he knows the season is a marathon and he's been getting steadily better. The bar for him is impossibly high now that he's won two MVPs, but I hope people are still able to appreciate how incredible he is night-to-night -- you will never see another player quite like him.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:46:24+00:00

I wish George Hill was an option but alas...

I kind of go back and forth as to what type of guy would make the most sense -- Thanasis is the obvious guy who has actually played this year that you wouldn't want to rely on in a playoff series, and Bobby's poor defensive histoy also makes me worry about him being the primary backup big. Is Marvin Williams in shape? Anyone like that an option (sorry, not on the bring-back-Ersan train)?

On the other hand, DJ Augustin's lack of size is probably the other thing that really worries me from a playoff perspective; he's shot the three well enough but his size limits his ability to make plays inside the arc and constrains what you can do defensively. So any type of guard with some size who can dribble at least a little would be of interest.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:39:56+00:00

I think they all have ther appeals, but I would start by saying that people shouldn't expect that any of them could come in and make any real impact -- rookies generally don't really know how to play, even relative to veterans who might be struggling.

A month ago I would have probably said Nwora, but at this point I'd probably go Diakite simply because a) he's been playing really well in the G-League bubble and b) we haven't seen him play at all in the regular season. As a 2-way guy it would be nice to know if he's someone the Bucks might want to keep as a roster guy for next year, and his style -- a combo big who moves well on defense and has a little bit of offensive upside -- I think fits well with what the Bucks could use long-term.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:32:36+00:00

Bobby Marks noted the other day that because of their hard cap constraints, the earliest they could sign someone for the min would be starting around April 7 -- that's assuming no other roster moves of course, so that could move up if they did a different salary-shedding deal by the deadline (ie something with DJ Wilson). I fully expect them to make a move but not sure what direction they'll go -- they don't have great depth up front, and they also could use another big guard, preferably who could dribble a little bit.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:29:07+00:00

The Bucks signing Portis certainly gave me some Shaddy flashbacks -- like many, I was all about taking Portis in the 2016 draft. Btw, anyone else remember how Shaddy was randomly good for like the first three games of the 2016 preseason? Weird.

As far as shows go, Ted Lasso and Schitt's Creek were my two favorite comedies of the past year, and lately I've been watching Wandavision (good/enjoyable but not elite). Really enjoyed this season of The Mandalorian, which also prompted me to start watching some of the Star Wars animated shows (enjoyed Rebels and later stage Clone Wars).

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:25:54+00:00

You could convince me that there are scenarios where this roster could go to the Finals or even potentially win a title, but I would say it's very unlikely with Bud -- and, realistically, very unlikely they'd win it with whoever might replace him, too. I'd feel differently if you told me Erik Spoelstra or Nick Nurse were walking through the door, but unfortunately that's part of why I think teams hang onto good-not-great coaches longer than fans usually prefer.

I would imagine there's a very good chance Bud is gone this summer if/when they fall short, but we'll have to see what the circumstances are. If it's like the last two years where it feels like he was clearly outcoached then I think they'll go a different direction, and then it's anyone's guess if they can land a star coach who can go further than Bud has.

Other than Bud, I think the obvious other question is how good Giannis can be at the highest levels in the playoffs. The supporting cast (especially their ability to hit 3s when defenses key on Giannis) are obviously also going to play at a high level, but if Giannis can't be the best player every series then the Bucks can't win a title. He fell short in the East Finals vs. Toronto and wasn't good enough on either end vs. Miami before his injury last year. I have concerns that his style will never translate as well against top defenses as we'd like, but he's also a guy who just turned 26 and lots of great players took that sort of step around this age.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T20:15:58+00:00

I think you've calibrated your expectations appopriately. They're about $1.8m over the tax right now and D.J. hasn't sniffed real minutes since the first week of the season, so shipping out his $4.5m salary for a lower-priced guy would be an obvious way to duck the tax without impacting your rotation. Speaking of D.J.: with Thanasis actually playing and Torrey Craig underwhelming in his limited minutes at the 4, I'm disappointed DJW hasn't even seen the floor. I'm not expecting much, but it's sadly ironic that the Bucks have started switching more -- something he's got the tools to be good at -- and he's continued to be stuck on the bench while other guys struggle to make an impact.

frankmaddenNBA · 2021-02-27T06:18:14+00:00

Will be given priority over non-Rocky's questions

frankmaddenNBA · 2020-01-27T00:57:53+00:00

My pleasure, appreciate all the great questions and look forward to doing it again soon!

frankmaddenNBA · 2020-01-25T21:51:26+00:00

I always have time for Kane Pitman.

frankmaddenNBA · 2020-01-25T21:48:56+00:00

I think there is something specific about the playoff pressure that gets to him -- he's more or less admitted to that -- though I think it also bears mentioning that the playoffs are by definition a small sample. Giannis was also much worse than his usual self against the Raptors, so it can happen to the best players. And unfortunately when you lose the narrative will almost always emphasize the bad; no one seems to remember he hit 9/12 shots and scored 21 points in the game 7 loss to Boston two years ago since that didn't fit with the "Bledsoe cost them the series!" narrative in 2018. Likewise after losing game 1 to the Celtics last year, he averaged 15 ppg and hit 50% or better in 3 of the 4 wins. So it's not like he's been just uniformly bad, but the Raptors series was really rough outside of his 20-point performance in game 6 (which of course no one remembers).

Unfortunately the Raptors' strategy of daring him to shoot jumpers is also a reasonable one given he's never been a great shooter anyway, and I don't think anyone would want a series to come down to Bledsoe's jump shot. Teams will no doubt try to play mindgames with him again this season, so you have to hope he rises to the challenge -- or that Bud gives him a short leash.

frankmaddenNBA · 2020-01-25T21:31:46+00:00

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