5 Keys For Milwaukee Bucks In Final Two Weeks Of Regular Season

The Milwaukee Bucks are in the stretch run of the 2022-23 NBA regular season. And their work is far from done with eight games and two weeks remaining.

It’s been a roller coaster ride for Milwaukee all season, who has rarely had their entire team available simultaneously. Head coach Mike Budenholzer has juggled a roster that’s seen Khris Middleton, Joe Ingles, Pat Connaughton, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Jae Crowder go in and out of the lineup at various times.

It’s a massive credit to the team that they sit in first in the Eastern Conference at 53-21 and 1.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics. Before we dive into five keys for the Bucks in the regular season’s final two weeks, let’s peep at their remaining schedule:

• 3/27 at Detroit Pistons
• 3/29 at Indiana Pacers
• 3/30 vs Boston Celtics
• 4/2 vs Philadelphia 76ers
• 4/4 at Washington Wizards
• 4/5 vs Chicago Bulls
• 4/7 vs Memphis Grizzlies
• 4/9 at Toronto Raptors

1). Health

Milwaukee needs to get all of their guys available for the home stretch. Middleton still isn’t playing both games in a back-to-back, which isn’t a huge deal since they won’t have any of those in the postseason (although, they still have two remaining in the regular season), but it speaks to the overall state of his health. Keep an eye on Giannis Antetokounmpo’s wrist as well.

Jae Crowder, Goran Dragic and Meyers Leonard also missed the last several games. Crowder is the big one there. Milwaukee can win their first-round series without him, but will need him in a matchup against the Celtics or 76ers. Above all else, getting healthy is their number one priority.

2). Cut Down Turnovers

On the court, the Bucks must focus on caring for the rock. They are too sloppy with it, coughing it up on 14.3 percent of their possessions, which ranks 17th in the NBA according to Cleaning the Glass.

Ingles, Middleton and Holiday—three of their primary ball-handlers—are their biggest offenders. Some of that will happen when you have the ball in your hands as often as they do. Some of it is just trying to do too much in a crowded space. Overall, it’s been trending in the right direction, as they rank sixth over the last two weeks.

3). Halfcourt Offense

The key to the Bucks’ offensive success in the postseason will be their ability to score in the halfcourt when the game slows down. In the past, it’s been their inability that has made playoff life difficult.

Despite ranking near the middle of the pack in halfcourt offense on the season, they sport the third-best points per 100 plays since the calendar turned to March. Ingles has been vital to unlocking the scoring efficiency—his playmaking in the halfcourt creates open shots for his teammates, while his knockdown shooting allows him to provide elite spacing off the ball. Others have stepped up their game as well.

Milwaukee isn’t nearly as efficient in the open court as you would think. The game slows down even further in the playoffs. The Bucks are showing positive signs of being able to solve that puzzle.

4). Protect Three-Point Line

Budenholzer made some major defensive changes heading into this year, opting to protect the three-point line as heavily as the paint. That’s a massive shift from a team who was willing to allow three-point shooters to bomb away as long as opponents didn’t get shots around the hoop.

Milwaukee gives up the fifth-fewest three-pointers on the season (after ranking in the bottom five in each of Budenholzer’s first four seasons), but that has been slipping recently. Since March 11th, the Bucks have given up the eighth-highest three-point frequency in the NBA, according to Cleaning the Glass. It’s time for them to refocus and take that shot away from opponents.

5). Hold Onto Top Seed

Other than health, holding onto the Eastern Conference’s top seed might be their next highest priority. It will shape their playoff path and make life much easier in April and May.

As it currently sits, the Bucks would face one of the Heat/Hawks/Raptors/Bulls in the first round, depending on how the play-in tournament concludes (the Heat will probably catch the Nets in the standings by then, so you can flip those two teams). In the second round, Milwaukee would see the winner of the Cavaliers and Knicks. Those are highly preferred matchups and would give Milwaukee the cleanest path to the Eastern Conference Finals.

The key point is they’d avoid having to play the Celtics AND the 76ers, only needing to beat one to advance to the NBA Finals. Those two teams would duel it out in the second round (Philadelphia will have to go through Miami in the first round), with the survivor’s reward having to play the most physical team in the NBA in the Bucks. This is the way.