Milwaukee Bucks Blog - The Bob Boozer Jinx : Mo Williams

Eastern Conference Preview

J.D. Mo — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:30:00 GMT

The NBA Eastern Conference got better in the offseason, and is probably stronger top to bottom than the West. Our Bucks, unfortunately did not improve for the short term. This is the inescapable Bucks reality as the 2009-10 season gets underway. Playoffs...(read more)

June Cleaver's Beaver and assorted All-Star snubs

J.D. Mo — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 08:57:00 GMT

It all starts with a basketball game -- the high energy, up tempo, defense playing and ball-moving Bucks valiantly trying but failing to keep up with Devin Harris and Vince Carter in the 4th quarter last night. Then a girl, let's call her Seven Twain because that's what she said to call her, shows up carrying a book called The Joy of God. This prompts the debut appearance of "Rob Live: Life on the funnier than snarky edge."

Rob: "You have to wonder about a book where they expect you to believe that all these animals live within a mile of Noah."

J-d Mo: "Whuzzan an ark?"

So as the Spurs and the Nuggets are getting underway and I'm trying to find Nene Hilario on the court to see whether he should be included in the up and coming Bob Boozer Jinx centers rankings (I'm not seeing it yet), Seven Twain brings up Gloria Steinem and this other feminist writer who contends that women should, basically, "stay in the kitchen." These references from Ms. Twain occur within less than a minute of one to the other, which would have become confusing but for the fact that we have dumb pop culture references at out disposal:

J-d Mo: "June Cleaver did look great in an apron."

Rob: "Leading to one of the greatest statements of all time: 'Ward, I think you were a little too hard on the Beaver last night.'"

Hey, I'm an old short-order grill cook, top of the stove stuff. There's just something incredibly sexy about a woman who knows her way around a baking oven. And you gotta admit, June did look great in an apron.

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Ray or Mo? Now that Orlando's Jameer Nelson is out for a while with a dislocated shoulder, NBA commissioner David Stern has an opportunity to correct the biggest All-Star snub of the year and give former Buck Ray Allen his rightful spot on the team. Oh no, but the NBA (via NBA-TV and ESPN) senses a k-o-n-traversy brewing and thinks there should be some doubt about it. Guess who "the other guy" is. It's former Buck Mo Williams, traded last year to the Cleveland Cavs for Luke Ridnour and Damon Jones.

Well, of course, Mo shoots better than our Lucky Luke, but that's about all Mo does better than Frodo. Mo and Luke could always hold a one-on-one showdown to decide who plays worse defense, but why bother?

Ray is having a career-best 50 % shooting season, is among the league leaders in about 10 statistical and other categories, and is well on his way to the NBA Hall of Fame. Neither Mo or Luke should be discussed in the same sentence or paragraph as Ray in terms of basketball ability (though Luke was Ray's running mate up in Seattle, and they were fun to watch). Ray's the obvious All-Star here and I'm predicting Stern gives the defending champion Celtics' most consistent player his rightful place on the team, nevermind the hype about Mo and the Cavs being snubbed.

On some level, this is only occuring because Lebron James has complained so vociferously about it, and, well, that makes it a story. But the bottom line here is that whether or not the fans voted in Allen Iverson, whether Nelson and Devin Harris are point guards, or that Devin went to 'Tosa East, or that the Hawks deserve an All-Star and Joe Johnson earned a spot on the East team -- to see any of those guys an All-Star team over Ray this season was fairly obnoxious.

Sorry Mo, you don't stand a chance. Yes, the Cavs did deserve two All-Stars but the guy who deserved the 2nd Cavs nod after Lebron was center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and he missed out because until about a week ago he was sidelined with a fractured ankle.

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Great column by Michael Hunt on the value of having Scott Skiles as Bucks coach. Yes, we need Andrew Bogut back, and don't bet against the Bucks coach.

Cudos also to JSOnline for sticking up for Ramon Sessions, who some feel was snubbed in the NBA All-Star weekend's rookie-sophomore game. The Ray Allen snub is obviously something I'm flummoxed about (not as much, however, as the general feeling that Mo Williams deserved a spot...) and I didn't really think about Sessions or the rookie. ESPN's John Hollinger, however, has been making a stink about it, based on the numbers Ramon has put up this season filling in for Michael Redd and backing up Ridnour. (Gardner has the link in his JSOnline story).

Unfortunately, Hollinger's opinion would matter more if he actually watched Bucks games, which he doesn't. If he did, he would know that when Redd came back, Ramon (Sam) was relegated to backing up Frodo, and that Skiles has had a quick yank with his 2nd year guard. As much as I like Sam (and we know Frodo wouldn't have gotten far without Sam), it's really not that much of a snub.

Also, consider that only eight 2nd-year players are chosen from around the league to play in the game. One of them appears to have been former Packer backup quarterback Aaron Brooks (Houston Rockets), somehow, someway.

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The Bucks, at 24-28, have played more games than any team in the NBA. This will finally begin to even out this month as they play only 3 games in the next nine days, then break for the 4-day All-Star weekend. It's a good time to get healthy.

It follows then that Richard Jefferson and Luc Mbah a Moute, the only Bucks to play in every game lead the league in games played (52). RJ is 4th in the NBA in minutes played (1860), which is where RJ finished last season when he played the full schedule for the Nets.

Jefferson hasn't missed a regular season game since March 2007, a string of 155 games.

RJ also on the NBA leader board in made free throws (16th), free throws attempted (14th) and fouls (7th).

Andrew Bogut remains 4th in the NBA in field goal % at 57.7%. He's fallen off the rebounding leader boards due to missed games and limited playing time due to his bad back.

Luke Ridnour is tied for 13th in steals (70) and 20th in steals per game with 1.4. He's also on the total assist board at 15th and his 5.7 apg average is good for 20th (that's surprising -- seems there are a few teams in the league that could move the ball better than they do).

Video: The basketball president

J.D. Mo — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:24:00 GMT

# 23 - Barry O'Bomber. The lefty had game.

The history made today with the inauguration of America's 44th president is a bit overwhelming, to say the least. It's a day for poetry, one of celebration for many in the NBA who heavily supported President Obama during his election campaign. Michael Jordan cried. I got a little teary-eyed, too.

Here's TNT analyst David Aldridge's excellent piece at NBA.com, "The Meaning of Obama: NBA embraces new leader's message."

Former Buck Mo Williams:

Just saying the words President Obama "defines the struggle," said Cavaliers guard Mo Williams. "It defines the commitment. It defines the unity. It defines what Martin Luther King did. It defines what America is about, bringing everybody together and living as one."

Andrew Bogut on ending the war:

Bucks center Andrew Bogut, Australian-born, isn't all that interested in politics. But he couldn't help but notice that the Obama phenomenon dominated American television on a nightly basis.

"I didn't realize how big it was," Bogut said. "Obviously, America needs a change, with everything that's happened in the past ... no offense, but obviously a lot of people in Australia are pretty angry with the whole Iraq issue. Obviously, we're allies with you guys, so we're sending a lot of troops over there who are dying as well. Hopefully Obama can put a stop to that and start bringing home some troops."

Grant Hill on Martin Luther King, Jr., the process of change and the inauguration of Obama.

The Heat's Alonzo Mourning hosted a number Obama rallies in Florida during the campaign, and brought a busload of kids to the inauguration. The Celtics left Boston for Miami early this morning so they wouldn't miss the telecast. Ray Allen had left the night before, heading for D.C. after the Celtics-Suns MLK day game to attend the event.

What the leader of the free world can do to get his Bulls to the playoffs.

Obama hooping it up in Kokomo, Indiana, during the campaign. The basketball president's still got some game ...

Washington Wizards coach Ed Tapscott says a 10-day contract is Obama's if he wants it. Wiz forward Caron Butler, who grew up in Racine, can't wait for a pickup game with the new prez.

Bucks Weekend: Halfway mark stats... Bucks on the West Coast... Eastern C-notes

J.D. Mo — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 11:17:00 GMT

Bucks (19-22) @ Sacramento Kings (10-30), 9pm Friday, FSN

Bucks @ LA Clippers (8-30), 9:30pm Saturday, FSN

The Kings and Clippers are struggling but the Bucks would do well to stay focused in California this weekend without center Andrew Bogut, who is staying home to rehab his ailing lower back; it's never fully recuperated since he first injured it on the road in mid-December, and flared up again Monday during the Wizards game.

Avoiding a shootout with the Kings would be wise, as would remembering to play defense. (The Bucks didn't do either and nearly blew a 15-point 4th quarter lead but held on to win 129-122 - scroll down for more).

And the Clippers? Marcus Camby's playing with half a team: Zach Randolph, Baron Davis, Chris Kaman and Milwaukee rookie Mike Taylor will miss the Bucks Saturday. Expect to see former Buck x 2 Brian Skinner logging forward PT in that one.

Michael Hunt weighs in on the trade scuttlebut that's dogged the Bucks all week and says DON'T. I agree. The luxury tax issues can be worked out over the summer, and if the Bucks are not willing to move the larger contracts (Michael Redd, Richard Jefferson) and are stuck with Dan Gadzuric, don't pretend that moving bench players by the Feb. 19 trade deadline is some sort of fix. The fans deserve a team and a real direction, not a bunch of half-truth salary cap whining. 'Nuff said for now because it's time for ...

BUCKS MIDWAY REPORT

The Bucks were one of first NBA teams to reach the halfway mark in the 2008-09 schedules; the others are Boston and ... Boston. The stumble the Celtics have been on since X-mas likely has something to do with this, as Paul Pierce in particular has looked weary and Ray Allen has cooled off, somewhat, after a red hot start.

What does this have to do with the Bucks? Well, the only two Bucks who've played in all 41 games are the defensive stalwarts: forwards Richard Jefferson and rookie Luc Richard Mbah a Moute. Jefferson has looked as tired as Pierce since X-Mas, and 22-year-old Mbah a Moute, who's never played such a compressed basketball schedule in his life, has aged before Bucks fans eyes. The strain of the schedule seems written on Luc's face.

The Bucks are 5-6 since X-mas and, after the loss to D-Wade, Daequan Cook (who?) and the Heat Wednesday, fell behind the 76ers in the Eastern Conference standings. While the Bucks are still on the fall-down, bounce-back pogo, the Sixers have picked up the pace, are running again and have won 5 straight -- remember last season? Look out for Philly, a team that's already handed the Bucks two of their 22 losses. The Bucks now head West for three games in four nights, beginning Friday in Sacramento.

Let's look now beyond the standings at where the Bucks stand after 41 games. (Sources: Basketball-reference.com and NBA.com)

Games played: R.J. and the Prince lead the league with 41, of course, tied for first with four Celtics: Pierce, Allen, Rondo and Powe. R.J. is 10th in minutes played, with the aforementioned Ray Allen and Paul Pierce just ahead of him in the top 5. (Seems Doc Rivers rides his stars even more than Skiles has ridden R.J.).

Top Ten in defense: The Bucks rank 8th in team defense (defensive effeciency it's called, or points allowed per 100 possessions). They've slipped somewhat of late, as they've fallen into the old, bad habit of trying to simply outscore the opposition, which, as we know, leads to sub-30 win seasons.

Opponent FG% - Bucks are 13th, allowing 45.2% opponent shooting.

Opponent 3-point shooting: Bucks are 15th, allowing 36.2%. This has been a problem of late, as the Sixers, Nets, T-Wolves, Wizards and Heat (Daequan Cook) have scorched the nets from the land of Reggie in the last week.

Opponent 3-point shooting in 27 games Redd has played: 39.8% (182-457). I isolated this stat after the T-Wolves game on Saturday, and it's gotten worse since. The Wiz and the Heat this week shot 50% (14-28) on 3's vs. the Bucks, who were lucky, perhaps, that the Wiz didn't shoot more of them. The games-Redd-played-% would be bad for 28th in the NBA in defending the 3-pointer, one percentage point away from dead last. I suppose Bucks fans could blame Charlie Bell -- he's missed 9 games since Redd came back Nov. 29.

Steals per game: Bucks rank 21st.

The Bucks are not stocked with great athletes and natural defenders, so one might wonder how they're a top 10 defensive team while falling to the bottom half of the league in these other areas. I'd say the answer is that Redd missed 14 games and the Bucks D earned a solid, active defensive presence in those games. I'd also defer the question to coach Scott Skiles, whose constant pressure D scheme has a way of evening things out, as they're among the league leaders in turnovers forced. I'd also point to the fact that the Bucks rebound the ball better than the vast majority of teams in the NBA ....

Rebounding: The Bucks are one of the top rebounding teams in the league and Andrew Bogut has everything to do with it. As a team, they rank 11th in rebounds per game, but the Bucks are 5th-best at outrebounding their opponents (nearly +3 per game), and that's the stat that matters. Guess who's ahead of them? The best teams in the NBA -- Cleveland, Boston and the Lakers -- along with Portland and its two-headed Oden-zilla center. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Charlie Villanueva contribute heavily on the glass, and their work has won some games for the Bucks this season.

Despite missing 3 games with a mashed knee and 4 with a bad back, Bogut ranks 12th in NBA total rebounds.

Bogut is 10th in total offensive rebounds, injuries and all.

The Bucks center is 7th in the NBA with 10.4 rpg.
Bogut is 5th in the league in the % of available rebounds he grabs (19.3) and 5th in defensive rebounding % at 27%.

Among centers, Bogut the rebounder this season is looking up only at the best center on the planet, Dwight Howard of Orlando. Yes, Andris Biedrins is rebounding a bunch, but Biedrins plays on Nellie's Warriors, who shoot 1,000 shots a game. And don't get me started on Emeka Okafor -- the Bucks have played the Bobcats four times this season (won 3) and in one game, 'Cats coach Larry Brown started rookie behemoth Ajinca to keep Bogues offa Emeka. Marcus Camby in Los Angeles is an ageless wonder but in the Clips-Bucks games at the BC, big PF Zach Randolph was guarding Bogut, leaving Camby to roam free.

Bogut is making good strides in the Bob Boozer Jinx Center rankings so far and is clearly now a top ten NBA center (the rankings will be updated at the All-Star break). Let's hope he can overcome those back problems that have held him down since Dec. 17 in Philly.

Offensively, the Bucks rank 20th: This is the points-scored-per-100 possessions rating. The Bucks are not a good shooting team, and they don't get out and run as much as they should. They're moving the ball more than in years past, including Redd, which probably keeps them from ranking even lower in the offensive categories. But the main problem here is shooting, particularly from 3-point-land. Inside the arc, the Bucks aren't half bad, and Bogut is 5th in the league in FG% at 57.5%. How 'bout these Bucks get the ball to their center a little more?

3-point shooting: The Bucks are a woeful 23rd in the NBA at 34.1%. That means it's still worthwhile for the Bucks to shoot 3's but just barely.

Michael Redd: Fans will be surprised that this bad 3-ball shooting year Redd is having (with recent exceptions) is not much worse than what he shot 2003-05 and last year. Redd's shooting 34.6% from the land of Reggie, and, though it's close to what he shot 4 of the 6 seasons he's been a starter, it is the worst he's shot it in the NBA.

Richard Jefferson has been a more reliable 3-point shooter than Redd at 38.1% and Luke Ridnour really shouldn't be heaving it up there as often as he does (30.3%) -- although it's difficult to argue with the 4 or 5 games Crazy Luke and Lucky Luke have won for the Bucks draining from downtown in crunchtime.

Tyronn Lue is shooting 50% (16-32) from behind the arc, but doesn't play much.

Charlie Villanueva is coming alive in his contract year, having his best season since his rookie year in Toronto, with 13.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg in just 22 mpg. Play Charlie more? Or is Scott Skiles using him just right? Extrapolated to 36 minutes per game, Charlie would be scoring 20 pts per game, realizing of course that it doesn't always work out that way in the NBA.

My sore lower back says this was more of a midway rundown than I had planned, and I still haven't worked my way into the Ramon Sessions and Joe Alexander for Memphis point guard Mike Conley trade that never happened. Maybe that's because it still hasn't happened and I'm feeling pretty good right about now not wasting anybody's time with it. There is definitely a problem within the Bucks organization in regards to trade rumor leaks -- if you can even call them that -- and Bucks fans tend to get rolling on them whether the trade talk is real or not ... If GM John Hammond is working on silencing some of the ~~yickety yack~~ wickity wack from Bucks central, I'm all for it, though in this case some of it came out of Memphis (the reverse of the Carl Landry rumors, which resided here and were largely ignored in Houston). Here in Sconnie, a Bucks reporter from the lame-o Racine Journal Times peddles this stuff while the Bucks beat writers at the Journal Sentinel stay mum (red flag there) & their editor reminds to gloss up Michael Redd's star ...

At least Bucks fans can rest assured that they can always count on The Bob Boozer Jinx for semi-reliable & responsible bullshit.

Meanwhile, in Chicago last night ....

Mo loses his running mate: As it was, the East-leading Lebrons went into Chicago playing without their starting big men, Zydrunas Ilgauskas (ankle) and Big Ben Wallace (flu). By the end of the OT loss to the newly healthy Bulls (Hinricn and Deng are back), they had also lost Delonte West. The Cavs starting guard fractured his shooting wrist and a gashed an eye after a nasty collision with Bulls rookie Derrick Rose. Looks like the Lebrons will be without two starters for some time (Big Z and West), which will put the onus on point guard Mo Williams and the Cavs bench to make up West's scoring (12.3 ppg). Where they'll really miss him is on D: West is Cleveland's top backcourt defender, and, well, Bucks fans are well aware of Mo's liabilities on D. West was 2nd on the Cavs in minutes played behind Lebron.

The Bucks don't play the Cavs again until Feb. 20, when Z is almost certainly to be back. West will be out for an indeterminate while.

Not to be missed in Chicago: The Bulls are healthy again. Kirk Hinrich is back, mangled hand recovered, and Luol Deng also returned last week after missing 8 games with an ankle sprain. The 17-22 Bulls beat the Cavs 102-93 Thursday in Chicago to finish 1-3 against the Lebrons for the season. They're a game behind the Bucks in the East standings but a game ahead in the loss column, which means they're basically tied with the Bucks for 9th in the East behind Philly and New Jersey, if that makes any sense.

KD Dwyer's Behind the Box Score featured this story, and made this reference to Scott Skiles' Baby Bulls:

[The Bulls] got back to playing defense, running, and generally making life one big aberration for their opponents. A throwback to the Scott Skiles days, the early days, of forcing teams into giving up when things aren't going their way.

Point being: The Bucks road to the playoffs is not an easy road. Shame on Bucks fans over the last couple of weeks who started talking playoffs d*** near every time the Bucks won a game. Enough of that Redd-ite thinking. The East is tougher this year than it's been since the 2002-03 season. And it's time for the Bucks to start playing like the Scott Skiles Bucks.

It's BUCKS WEEKEND ... more to come.

As awe-inspiring as that photo is, Chris Kaman is not ... but he's funny. Unfortunately, Bucks fans will robbed this season of the classic Kaman-Bogut showdown, as Kaman will miss Saturday's Bucks game in LA, still nursing a stressed arch in his right foot. Or maybe it's the left one.

Bucks face Lebron, Mo Williams - Cavs look like title contenders; Antonio McDyess; Damon Jones

J.D. Mo — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 20:45:00 GMT

Image by Jeremy Jannene

One could argue that the Phoenix Suns, who defeated the Bucks Saturday, may not be title contenders. I wouldn't but it could be argued, Shaquille O'Neal's age being one talking point. However, if you come across arguments that the Cleveland Cavaliers are not contenders, then you know that the source didn't watch the 2008 playoffs.

While NBA wags all over the country were ready to hand the 2008 NBA title to Kobe, Pau Gasol and the Lakers, the real battle was taking place in the East as the Celtics wrested a grueling semifinals series from the Cavs in the final minute of game seven. Once Lebron and his Cavs were dispatched, the Pistons and Lakers were a matter of course for the champion Celtics.

This season, the Cavs are healthy, there are no holdouts to deal with, and they've improved with the addition of Mo Williams' instant offense in the August trade with the Bucks and Oklahoma City Thunder. Even without the addition of Mo, this Cleveland team couldn't help but improve: Coach Mike Brown has had more time to integrate the new players acquired last February at the trading deadline -- Big Ben Wallace, Delonte West and Wally Szczerbiak.

With the addition of Mo and rookie power forward J.J. Hickson, most of Cleveland's 9-man rotation is new since they played the Spurs for the NBA Title in 2007. In other words, the Lebron team that Detroit couldn't beat in a playoff series has been remade. They are younger and quicker at the guard positions; they are stronger inside with Ben Wallace; and with the addition of Mo and a healthy, more experienced Boobie Gibson, they shoot better than ever. The only real question is whether the Cavs' aging big men, Wallace and Zydrunas Ilgauskas can stay healthy into the playoffs. Currently, backup big man Anderson Varejao -- who's name surfaced often over the summer as a guy the Bucks may be interested in -- is playing more than Wallace.

I'm not expecting the Bucks to escape from the Q in Cleveland with a win. In fact, coach Skiles should let Michael Redd shoot all night in his home state** and play the deep bench players like Joe Alexander, Dan Gadzuric, Tyrone Lue, Malik Allen and Francisco Elson -- save some energy for the home crowd tomorrow night against an injury riddled San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs without Manu Ginobili or Tony Parker? It's a gift and the Bucks should focus on getting a win against the Spurs. The early schedule is so tough, the more wins they can cherry pick here and there, the better off they'll be in January when the schedule eases up, obviously.

**Anybody else wondering why coach Skiles seems in no hurry to get Redd back on the court?

How is Mo doing? So far so good with room to improve. Through seven games the Cavs are 5-2 and Mo is playing 34 minutes a game, averaging 14 pts and 5 assists. He and Lebron are doing most of the ballhandling which is heat off of Delonte West - the Cavs best defensive guard - and Boobie Gibson, the 3-point gun. Mo has yet his shot going but I'm sure he'd love to turn it on against his old teammates.

Are the Bucks in the Antonio McDyess sweepstakes? No. But before I get to that, McDyess would be a perfect fit on the Bucks roster -- a power forward who plays within the game and can stick a fifteen footer a la Scott Williams back in the days of The Big Three. McDyess would very likely be the factor that would launch the Bucks into the playoffs.

According to McDyess' agent, 19 teams have called about acquiring Antonio, who refused to report to the Denver Nuggets, negotiated a buyout of his contract and was waived yesterday. Once he clears waivers Wednesday, McDyess is a free agent and can sign with anyone but Detroit. The rules say he must wait 30 days before he can resign with the Pistons.

I am assuming that one of the calls to McDyess' agent was from Bucks GM John Hammond, simply because Hammond is too thorough to NOT make the call. But if McDyess wouldn't report to the Nuggets (reportedly because the Nuggets are not a title contender), what chance would the Bucks have? They wouldn't be able to compete with the Celtics, Cavs, Lakers and Pistons, all of whom are very interested in signing McDyess.

It's difficult to imagine McDyess abandoning his Pistons teammates of the last four years and jumping to Cleveland or Boston, but stranger things have happened in these self-interested times. I wouldn't bet on McDyess going anywhere but back to Detroit. NBA fans should keep this in mind when reading the wishful thinking in the Cleveland and Boston media, or watching the any-rumor-for-a story channel, ESPN. In this Boston.com story, Sam Cassell, a friend of McDyess', figures his pal will wait 30 days and return to Detroit, where they've missed him in the paint already.

What's Damon Jones up to? At the tail end of the Cleveland Morning Journal McDyess story linked above (here 'tis again), the MJ tracks down former Cav Damon Jones:

Former Cavs guard Damon Jones, who was traded to Milwaukee in August but never reported, is working out in California under trainer Joe Abunassar. He’s waiting for another shot at the NBA. The Bucks don’t appear overanxious to give up on his expiring contract, which is why he’s still on their roster. Jones isn’t interested in a buyout.

So what does "Bucks don't appear overanxious to give up on his expiring contract" mean? It means that John Hammond likely views Jones and his $4.5 million contract, which expires at the end of this season, as good to have around when you've got to work out a trade. The bigger question is who else on the Bucks roster would Hammond be willing to trade? My speculation is that Bogut and R.J. are safe - and probably Ramon Sessions and the rookies. The rest will likely wait until after some more games are played.