Jason Kidd
The regular season is down to just a dozen remaining games for the Milwaukee Bucks, yet there is a different type of mood within the BMO Harris Bradley Center locker room and in the stands.
Milwaukee remains the Eastern Conference’s sixth seed with a 34-36 record that has dipped under .500 for the first time since December 27. And that number is trending downward in a hurry.
The Bucks lost their sixth straight game Sunday when Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers scored 64 second half points to rally from a nine-point Milwaukee lead at halftime.
Milwaukee continues a four-game homestand against the Miami Heat and former Marquette star Dwyane Wade tonight (7pm). Miami currently sits 1.5 games back of the Bucks in the Eastern Conference.
Since trading point guard Brandon Knight to Phoenix, and acquiring the trio of Michael Carter-Williams, Tyler Ennis, and Miles Plumlee, Milwaukee is 4-13. That includes a 4-4 mark at home and nine straight setbacks on the road.
At the All-Star break, the energy surrounding the Bucks was as high as it has been in several years, with the team seven games over .500 at 30-23 and having just won eight of their last nine. Wins against Miami, Indiana, and West-leading Golden State to close out the homestand would go a long way to rejuvenating that excitement.