MILWAUKEE BUCKS

Heat 109, Bucks 97: Kidd's lineup shuffle fails to yield a victory

Charles F. Gardner
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Miami Heat guard Goran Dragic chases a loose ball ahead of Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Miami – Jason Kidd used some different looks Saturday night, shuffling his lineup and using rookie forward Thon Maker as a starter and a finisher.

But the Milwaukee Bucks still could not shake their defensive malaise as they dropped a fifth straight game, falling to the Miami Heat, 109-97, at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Dion Waiters tied a career high with 33 points to lead the Heat (14-30) to its third straight victory. Goran Dragic added 25 points and center Hassan Whiteside had 16 points and 15 rebounds.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks (20-23) with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Jabari Parker had 16 points off the bench and Matthew Dellavedova added 15 points and seven assists.

Kidd made two changes in the starting lineup, putting Dellavedova back in the first five and giving the 7-foot-1 Maker his first NBA start. Parker was benched for violating a team rule and Kidd made it clear that was the only reason the third-year forward did not start. The Bucks coach would not reveal the nature of the violation.

Kidd wanted to get Dellavedova going after the former Cleveland guard had struggled in recent games while coming off the bench. Dellavedova started the first 30 games but was used as a sub after returning from a hamstring injury that sidelined him for five games.

"I haven't been playing that well, so I've just got to play better on both ends," Dellavedova said. "We've just got to fight our way out of this.

"It's tough to win, but that's why it's worth it. It's a little of everything but defensively we haven't done what we did at the start of the year. We've been talking through things and all that and watching film. But we've just got to go out there and do it on the court."

BOX SCORE: Heat 109, Bucks 97

Maker responded well, ending with six points and a plus-7 rating in a season-high 18 minutes. He played 8 minutes in the fourth quarter in a lineup that featured Antetokounmpo, Parker, Dellavedova and Malcolm Brogdon.

"The numbers show that he (Maker) was a positive on the floor," Kidd said. "I thought he did a really good job starting and being able to play in that fourth quarter.

"Defensively and offensively, I thought he was one of the bright spots for us. It (the lineup with Maker, Antetokounmpo and Parker) could be (good), but we've got to find time for him on the floor. The more he's on the floor, the more confidence he's going to have. He did everything we asked him to do in the post."

Antetokounmpo said he didn't think the lineup shakeup was detrimental.

"The lineup was good, coach's decision," Antetokounmpo said. "We're professional players; we've got to play no matter what lineup."

Parker wound up playing 32 minutes off the bench and entered the game to open the second quarter. He played the entire quarter.

"It's just a challenge," Parker said of the lineup switch. "I tried to be as positive as possible."

Maker said he loved being on the floor with Parker and Antetokounmpo in the fourth quarter.

"On the defensive end, we tried to cause havoc and get out and run, our best game," Maker said. "Down the stretch, they hit some tough threes. We've just got to continue to dig deep and take those threes away."

The Bucks trailed by 11 points entering the fourth quarter. Maker drilled a three-pointer and made 1 of 2 free throws to cut Milwaukee's deficit to 92-83 with 6:35 remaining, but the Bucks could not make a strong run. They were within eight twice after that, but Waiters hit a pair of threes to help the Heat pull away and seal its victory.

Milwaukee has lost two of three meetings against Miami, with one remaining in February on the Bucks' home court.

"One of the things we've struggled with is looking at the team's record and not coming out with that same intent (as we would) if we're playing Cleveland or playing Golden State," Kidd said. "That's something we've got to get better at.

"They're all pros. You have to respect them and you have to come with the intent to play hard and hit first. And we just weren't aggressive."

       THREE TAKEAWAYS

1. Jason Kidd’s lineup shuffle appeared to help Matthew Dellavedova, who showed renewed spark as a starter. Dellavedova hustled for loose balls, poked away the opening tip to give the Bucks possession and scored on his floater in the lane. But Malcolm Brogdon came off the bench and went 1 for 10 while scoring only four points. Kidd was asked what he should do. "Start six of them," he quipped.

2 . The Bucks made Dion Waiters look like Kobe Bryant in the first half. Waiters hit 7 of 11 shots, including 3 of 5 three-pointers, as he drove through the defense or spotted up for open threes. Waiters had 20 points at halftime and finished with 33 on 12-of-19 shooting, including 5 of 8 on threes.

3. The Bucks defense continued to struggle as Miami shot 53.2%, hitting 41 of 77 field-goal attempts. Miami was 13 of 30 from three-point range (43.3%).

    UP NEXT

Teams: Houston Rockets (34-13) vs. Milwaukee Bucks (20-23).

When: 7 p.m. Monday.

Where: BMO Harris Bradley Center.

About the Rockets: The Bucks played in Houston on Wednesday and could not keep up with MVP candidate James Harden and his teammates, who launched 44 three-point attempts (making 14). Harden scored 38 points and Eric Gordon made 7 threes in Houston’s 111-92 victory. Sheboygan native and former Wisconsin star Sam Dekker scored a career-high 30 points while leading the Rockets to a 119-95 victory against the Grizzlies in Memphis on Saturday night. Dekker made his first NBA start and hit 12 of 19 shots, including 6 of 11 from three-point range.