Milwaukee Bucks preview by Brandon Haraway
1. What can the Bucks learn from the 2006-07 season to help them improve their 2007-08 campaign?
The Bucks should have learned that they can compete in the East after so many straight dismal seasons. They have a true star in Michael Redd, a top pick center in Andrew Bogut, a better than average point guard in Mo Williams, and talent at the forwards positions in the form of Charlie Villnueva, Yi Jianlian, and Bobby Simmons. They have the personnel to do big things in the East, and they should know this, as the majority of this squad went through the good and bad last year. People forget this team was probably playoff-bound last year before Redd went down, and they played all year long without Simmons.
With this experience now under their belt, they SHOULD make the playoffs this year and could even make a little splash. They are obviously behind the Detroit Pistons, Cleveland Cavaliers, Chicago Bulls, and the rest of Eastern "powerhouses," but a playoff team nonetheless.
2. What was the Bucks best and/or worst move during the offseason, either by free agency, trade, or draft?
Easily the drafting of Yi Jianlian will be the biggest move, but whether it's good or bad will need to be played out this season. He was an early pick and the Bucks were targeting him. Most teams will talk to the kid when they are pretty certain he’s their guy, but the Bucks failed to do so successfully, and Yi immediately rejected the notion of playing in one of the smallest markets in the country.
Now he’s here, but Bucks’ leadership had to promise him at least 20 minutes a game. All this after they had already signed Desmond Mason and with Simmons on the road back from injury. Now they have four solid forwards and have backed themselves into a corner, having to play Yi 20 minutes a game. Not good news, especially when they’ll be having to take minutes away from Villanueva and Simmons to accommodate.
3. Who is the Most Important Player on the Bucks? The MIP is not necessarily the most talented, but the one that makes the biggest difference in the Bucks doing well each game.
The easy answer is Redd, and that’s true to some extent. He’s the face of the franchise and needs to play like it.
But usually, he’s going to be solid every night for you. Where the Bucks really need a leader is in Andrew Bogut. He’s made big strides in his two years in the league, and needs to make even more progress this year. He has the tools to be a top center in the East, and can face up against anyone in the league. Outside of the Australian, the Bucks don’t have much else in the way of bigs, so he HAS to step it up, or this team faces an early playoff exit or even an early offseason.
4. What needs to go right for the Bucks to succeed this coming season?
First of all, Michael Redd needs to be ON and he needs to lead his team. This is his franchise, his city. These are his men. Nobody else will challenge him for that and the team needs to make it very clear he is their building block. He needs to help develop the team chemistry and lead the young guys along.
They also need a secondary scorer to emerge. Mo Williams and Bogut are what they are and will give you some good production, but either Yi, Villanueva, or Simmons really need to step up and take the reins. There is a lot of opportunity for the best of these three to really run with the team and someone will (or at least SHOULD) emerge.
Most importantly though, they need to stay healthy. Injuries killed them last year. They simply are not deep enough to weather a full season injury like Simmons or 30 games off from Redd. If they stay healthy, they will be successful.
5. Who are the contenders for the NBA Championship and who do you see taking the title?
Being a Phoenix Suns fan, I’d love to see the Suns take it and I think they have to be considered among the favorites, but the bottom line is, there is no clear cut favorite.
That being said, I’ll list my top five (in no order): Suns, Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, Pistons, and Cavs.
In order for the Cavs to win, they need to make a deal for a PG (Mike Bibby?) and I view the Pistons as a longshot too. The big three in the West are simply too powerful to be reckoned with. The Houston Rockets or Utah Jazz could be up there too.
Is this the year Tim Duncan falls off considerably? Or the year reigning NBA MVP, Dirk Nowitzki gets hurt and Dallas suffers? Or the year Steve Nash misses a chunk of time? A lot of the success of these teams has to do with taking advantage of injuries and aging on the other teams, so as the season plays itself out, we’ll see.
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