Milwaukee Bucks
			MORE bucks

	Other Enemy Lines:  Select team Atlanta Hawks Boston Celtics Charlotte Bobcats Chicago Bulls Cleveland Cavaliers Dallas Mavericks Denver Nuggets Detroit Pistons Golden State Warriors Houston Rockets Indiana Pacers Los Angeles Clippers Los Angeles Lakers Memphis Grizzlies Miami Heat Milwaukee Bucks Minnesota Timberwolves New Jersey Nets New Orleans Hornets New York Knicks Orlando Magic Philadelphia 76ers Phoenix Suns Portland Trail Blazers Sacramento Kings San Antonio Spurs Seattle SuperSonics Toronto Raptors Utah Jazz Washington Wizards SI's Scouting Reports: Select team Atlanta Hawks Boston Celtics Charlotte Bobcats Chicago Bulls Cleveland Cavaliers Dallas Mavericks Denver Nuggets Detroit Pistons Golden State Warriors Houston Rockets Indiana Pacers Los Angeles Clippers Los Angeles Lakers Memphis Grizzlies Miami Heat Milwaukee Bucks Minnesota Timberwolves New Jersey Nets New Orleans Hornets New York Knicks Orlando Magic Philadelphia 76ers Phoenix Suns Portland Trail Blazers Sacramento Kings San Antonio Spurs Seattle SuperSonics Toronto Raptors Utah Jazz Washington Wizards

An opposing team's scout sizes up the Bucks

There's a lot of potential on this team. One of the big questions is whether Bobby Simmons and Charlie Villanueva can stay healthy coming off their injuries, because those are key ingredients to their success ...

Their strength is in their guard play. They're built around perimeter players Michael Redd, Mo Williams, Simmons, Desmond Mason and Charlie Bell ...

I question their big men. Andrew Bogut is coming into his third year as a No. 1 pick, and while he's shown steady improvement, he needs to step up this year and become a consistent scorer for them. He's a good 15-foot shooter, a big, strong kid who runs the court well, but he needs to elevate his game. It's getting to the point that they should be getting more in return for their investment, don't you think? He should be a knock-down guy from 15 feet and a reliable low-post scorer. He has good skills as a passer. And he has a bit of an edge to him: You'll see him get angry and argue -- even with his own coaches. So he's got some fight, and they should be able to get a lot out of him as strong, athletic and skilled as he is ...

Dan Gadzuric is an athletic backup center. How many teams have good second-string centers? He's limited offensively, but he can defend the post ...

Rookie Yi Jianlian really struggled in the summer league, which is the equivalent of D-League basketball. It's like stepping up three levels to go from summer league to the NBA, so if he couldn't do it in the summer, what can they expect from him now? And yet there are these reports that he was promised extensive playing time by owner Herb Kohl. If that's true, it's a mistake. No owner should be putting his coach in that kind of position. If it's true, then Kohl might as well be coaching the team. What if he doesn't produce? Can you keep him on the floor? The reality in that case is that he won't play 25 minutes per night until he proves himself. Coach Larry Krystkowiak is not going to give him extended minutes and lose as a result, no matter what the owner or the agent has to say, because if he's losing by following orders, then he's going to wind up getting fired anyway. So why not try to win? At least that's my feeling ...

Then again, there may be a lot of minutes for Yi because Villanueva has been injury-prone. If healthy, Villanueva is definitely an offensive threat. This team should be able to score and he should be a big reason why. I remember when he was a rookie for Toronto he had 48 points against Milwaukee; funny how he ends up in Milwaukee the next season after having his best game against them. He doesn't defend, and I question his toughness as a rebounder. If Toronto felt that he was a future franchise player, they would have kept him. He sure isn't a prototypical power forward: He's a pick-and-pop guy who shoots the three and plays more like a small forward ...

When they signed Simmons, I thought he was an excellent fit for what they needed, though he was a pretty expensive free agent. I remember seeing him the D-League five years ago and he couldn't shoot past 15 feet, and now to see how hard he's worked to increase his range out to the three-point line, it says a lot about who he is. If he's healthy enough to give them deep shooting to go with all of his other qualities -- as a ball-handler, rebounder, a very good defender and a leader who brings some toughness -- he'll be a key guy for them ...

It was a good move to bring back Mason, who will help their chemistry with his defense, energy and all-around play. I'm not going to say that Ruben Patterson wasn't a good player for them last year, but Mason will be a better fit ...

A lot of teams had interest in Mo Williams last summer. He probably isn't worth all of the money he got [six-year deal worth more than $50 million], but he fills a difficult position and he was one of the better free agents available. He's become more of a scorer than a point guard, a shoot-first, pass-second guy. In the long run, that's another reason why Milwaukee is probably not a playoff team, because he looks to score more than to set up the other guys. But Williams also does a good job of keeping opposing point guards out of the paint from half-court. He's very athletic and strong, and he can guard the ball ...

Bell is a strong utility guy who can play three positions. Every team needs guys like that. I would have re-signed him too. He can play the point, and he can also shift to shooting guard and even to small forward because he has toughness. He'll compete with anybody, he'll defend and he'll make shots. Plus, he should have more help this year, so the offense might come easier for him ...

Redd is probably the best catch-and-shoot player in the league -- it's close between Redd and Ray Allen. There's isn't anybody better than those two guys coming off screens, and when you've got a player like that to get you 20-25 points a night, that's a pretty good option to have. If the rest of their guys are healthy, his job will become even easier. When you play Milwaukee, you build your defense around stopping Redd because he takes a lot of shots. But he's a given. If they want to win, it's going to depend on their other guys because he can't do it by himself ...

Of course, Redd isn't a good defender. He just wants to run to the other end and play offense. He floats like all of the really good scorers. I wouldn't say he's a great athlete either. Redd was a second-round pick, a one-dimensional player, but he does something in this league better than anybody the way he comes off screens with a really quick release and the ball up high. He's like Reggie Miller coming off screens ...

I'd say their best defender is Simmons. Mason is good at that end, and so is Bell. Williams is decent, but their bigs are not a physical front line that guards the goal. I don't see Bogut as a shot-blocker, though I think he has the capability. The good teams have guys to plug up the goal and get stops, but Bogut isn't that type of player ...

Milwaukee has become a depressing franchise in some ways. At the end of last season, it looked like they weren't trying to win in order to get a better draft pick. It was a half-full arena, people were booing the team and it was an easy place for visiting teams ...

I just don't think they're a playoff team because their strength is their backcourt and they don't protect the goal. The question that ultimately comes up is whether this team can stop anybody. I don't think the Bucks can.