To start the season, the Milwaukee Bucks have employed several different lineup configurations. Head coach Mike Budenholzer is using a lot of unusual five-man combinations, both out of necessity due to injuries and partially as a strategy to play with the roster to discover who gels well together.
Milwaukee has employed 206 different five-man groups in 19 games. Behind the Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic, San Antonio Spurs, and Toronto Raptors, that is the NBA’s seventh-highest total.
The usual starters, Jrue Holiday, Jevon Carter, Grayson Allen, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Brook Lopez, have been combined the most frequently. The next highest combo has played for 28 minutes; they have played 127 minutes together. With the second-highest net rating of any five-man lineup that has played at least 100 minutes together this season, this combination has also been the most effective.
If I didn’t include a little example disclaimer moving forward, I would be failing in my duty. It’s crucial to bear in mind that a single outlier performance might have a significant impact on the lineup groupings as a whole.
Surprisingly, their second-most often used lineup performs better than their starting team. With eight games and 28 minutes of combined time, George Hill, Wes Matthews, Jordan Nwora, Bobby Portis, and Antetokounmpo had a net rating of 32.8. (about 10 points better than the starters). Hot shooting and a potent offensive strategy focused on Antetokounmpo have been their driving forces.
When feasible, Budenholzer like to keep one of his best bigs on the court. The finest rim protectors in the game are Antetokounmpo and Lopez, who act as the final line of defence. As a result, Portis is playing more power forward in Milwaukee than ever before. Serge Ibaka is available when not teamed with the defensive superstars to provide further assistance.
The most challenging part is the wing. With the exception of two games, the Bucks have played without Pat Connaughton, and Middleton and Joe Ingles have yet to make their season debuts. The roster is now lacking in both strength and size.
In order to bridge that gap while Holiday and Carter take over the starting backcourt positions, Allen has been asked to switch to the three. After just spent 12% of his time there the previous season, he now spends around half of his time at the three. However, none of them have yet to step up: Nwora, Matthews, and newcomer MarJon Beauchamp have all received run on the wings. Now that he’s back, Connaughton will aid in filling that immediate vacuum.
The guard has been much cleaner. One of them is always on the floor managing the offence thanks to Budenholzer’s three-man rotation of Hill, Carter, and Holiday. The Bucks may experiment with a variety of roster combinations since they can play together as well.
The key to Milwaukee’s success is Antetokounmpo’s adaptability. He may move up or down a position based on the mismatch the Bucks want to capitalise on. If he chooses to shoot threes, Lopez and Portis will be able to keep the floor open for him with their shooting. Milwaukee has the tools on its roster to make opponents pay if he switches to the five.
The Bucks’ whole season is spent practising for the playoffs under Budenholzer. They want to establish solid routines so they can make another genuine attempt to reach the NBA Finals. That also entails experimenting with different player combinations to discover who meshes effectively. Budenholzer is underestimated in that regard.