Bucks still in playoff hunt despite struggles
NEW YORK - It’s difficult to predict how this season will turn out for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Khris Middleton is back in the lineup after missing the first 50 games.
Jabari Parker is out for the rest of the season and part of the next after suffering a second anterior cruciate ligament tear in his left knee.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is an all-star starter and will take the stage with the NBA’s best this weekend in New Orleans.
Plenty has happened and more twists and turns are to come before mid-April and the end of the regular season.
A struggling Bucks team looked miserable in a home loss to the Los Angeles Lakers last week but has rebounded with back-to-back victories over Indiana and Detroit.
Now Milwaukee (24-30) has one more game before the break, meeting the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night at the Barclays Center.
Despite losing 12 of 14 games in a recent stretch, the Bucks are just one game out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, now held by the Pistons (26-30). And the Bucks players can find reasons to believe.
“It’s always good to end the first half on a positive note,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. “It’s not going to be easy on the road in Brooklyn.
“You can start thinking about vacation or the All-Star Game. So we have one more thing before the break: We have to find a way to win on the road and put ourselves back in the playoff race.”
The all-star break actually comes at the 55-game mark for the Bucks, so it is well past the halfway point of the season.
Just 27 games will remain when the Bucks return to action Feb. 24 at home against the Utah Jazz.
Division rivals Indiana, Chicago and Detroit have struggled heading into the break and could slip out of playoff position if their slides continue. That could create an opening for the Bucks, who seem to have found some defensive answers while limiting the Pacers to 100 points and the Pistons to 89.
“I think we did a lot of good things in Indiana and we carried them over (to Monday against Detroit),” center Greg Monroe said. “We have to finish out this last game before the break and play the same way in Brooklyn, then come out after the break and keep it moving.”
Monroe had 25 points and 13 rebounds against his former team and Michael Beasley excelled as a starter with 23 points.
Kidd moved Beasley into the starting lineup for the past two games, and rookie Thon Maker took over as the starting center with John Henson going to the bench.
“We have a deep roster,” Beasley said. “I think we’ve shown it all season and it’s unfortunate that he (Parker) went down. Us being family, me being his (Parker’s) brother, you have got to pick up the slack and hold the fort down until he gets back.”
Middleton played 18 minutes and scored 11 points against the Pistons as he continued to work his way back after returning from hamstring surgery.
The 6-foot-8 shooting guard could be a key factor in the Bucks making a run after the break.
Tony Snell, who started in Middleton’s absence and has stayed in the starting lineup with Middleton on restricted minutes, has found his three-point stroke in the last two games. He was 4 for 5 from three-point distance against the Pacers and 4 for 8 against the Pistons.
“We’ve asked him to play a lot of minutes; we’ve asked him to guard the best perimeter players,” Kidd said. “He’s never said no. He’s always up for the competition on the defensive end.
“Now looking at him shoot the ball, he’s just like Khris. Being able to have both of them out on the floor gives the opportunity for Giannis and Moose (Monroe) to do their thing.”
The Nets bring a 13-game losing streak into Wednesday’s game after losing to Memphis, 112-103, on Monday. Brooklyn set a franchise record with its 15th consecutive home defeat. The last time it won at home was Dec. 26 against the Charlotte Hornets.
Kidd has a 9-1 record against the Nets, the franchise he starred for as a player and coached for one season (2013-’14) before leaving to take over as Bucks coach. Milwaukee has won seven straight against the Nets.
Parker has surgery: The Bucks announced Tuesday that Parker underwent successful surgery to repair his torn ACL. The surgery was performed at The Steadman Clinic in Vail, Colo., by knee specialist Robert LaPrade.
The Bucks estimate Parker's rehabilitation period at 12 months and said a timeline for his return to basketball activity will be established at a later date.