Jason Kidd and the Milwaukee Bucks were in Florida over the weekend, hoping to regain some momentum for a back-to-back on the road against the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat.
The Bucks were looking to end a three-game losing streak on Friday night when they played Orlando, but J-Kidd’s squad couldn’t come up with the road victory. Milwaukee got off to a quick 19-9 lead, but the Magic went on a 16-4 run to end the first quarter.
“We had no energy; we came flat,” Jason said. “We can’t be predicated on scoring the ball. If we don’t score the ball, we tend to take a step back. Those are the things we were talking about. We’re not built on the offensive end. We’re not just built on two guys. We’ve got to get multiple guys touching the ball.”
The Bucks were able to keep things close in the second quarter, but the Magic scored 53 second-half points and went on to win 112-96.
“That happens during an 82-game season; you get out of rhythm. But our rhythm is when we share the ball, we play at a very high level. When we come down and play zero-pass or one-pass, we play in the hands of our opponent,” Kidd said. “We’re young. You stay together and you keep working through it.”
Coach Kidd has received some outstanding play from his reserve unit this season, but the Bucks bench wasn’t able to break out of its recent slump, combining for just 28 points.
“I tried. I played everybody,” Jason said. “The bench has been great for us all season and here of late, we haven’t been able to get stops or make shots. We’re at the halfway point of the season and for a young team, we’ve got to get mentally stronger.”
Following the loss to Orlando, the Bucks traveled to Miami on Saturday night to end a three-game road trip.
After losing four games in a row, Coach Kidd tried to shake things up by making some changes to the starting lineup. Kidd started Thon Maker in place of Jabari Parker, who was benched due to a violation of team rules. Maker, making his first career start, scored six points in 18 minutes while finishing with a team-high plus-7 rating.
“The numbers show that he 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.”
Matthew Dellavedova was reinserted into the starting lineup for Malcolm Brogdon. The move was made to try and resurge the veteran guard after he’s been struggling since returning from his hamstring injury. The Bucks were tied at 20 late in the first quarter, but once the Heat took the lead from there, they never gave it back.
“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. We’ve got to put more effort into the game defensively. We’re having too many mental breakdowns. We’ve got to make the adjustment. But the one thing is it starts with your energy and effort, and we just didn’t have it tonight.”
It was a tough night for Milwaukee, especially around the arc, allowing the Heat to make 13 three-pointers.
The lone bright spot of the weekend came in the news that Giannis Antetokounmpo was named an Eastern Conference All-Star starter.
“Being one of the 10 best in the world, to take the big stage, for him dreams do come true,” Kidd said. “He believed that he belongs and he’s showing that this season.”
Up next the Bucks come back home to play the Houston Rockets, where they’ll look to avenge last Wednesday’s loss in Houston.
