The Milwaukee Bucks will look for improved energy and a desired result when they visit the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday night.
After losing 125-96 on Monday in a road game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Bucks go from playing one of the NBA’s best teams to one of the league’s worst.
The Bucks used a makeshift lineup in the loss at Oklahoma City, with what coach Doc Rivers referred to as a fatigued team. Milwaukee’s losing streak reached four games.
“My instincts told me to fly them directly to Charlotte (on Monday),” Rivers said of several starters who didn’t play. “But that’s a bad look and so I didn’t do that. And didn’t want to waste the owners’ money on fines.”
The Hornets are on a five-game losing streak and have just two games left on a nine-game homestand. They have won once during the stretch so far.
“I definitely have to figure out how to keep these guys to be a little bit more consistent,” Charlotte coach Charles Lee said.
The Bucks had a five-game string of 30 or more points from Giannis Antetokounmpo end when he sat out Monday with what was listed as right patella tendinopathy. Damian Lillard and Brook Lopez also were out with injuries, while Bobby Portis Jr. did not play because of personal reasons.
Antetokounmpo and Lillard are listed as questionable for Wednesday, while Lopez and Portis are expected to play.
The biggest issue for Milwaukee came on defense when it surrendered 38 or more points in each of the first three quarters.
If there was a bright spot for Charlotte in Monday’s 124-114 loss to the NBA-worst Washington Wizards, it came with the first career triple-double for forward Miles Bridges, who had 24 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds.
Charlotte fell behind by 26 points in the first half and trailed 77-54 at the break against the Wizards.
“We just can’t wait until teams hit us in the mouth first,” Bridges said. “We’ve got to go out there and play from the jump, play with a lot more pride. … We’ve got nothing to lose. We’ve just got to go out there and play.”
The Hornets are adamant about making better use of center Mark Williams, who had a rough first half with three points and three rebounds. But he ended up with 23 total points and 14 rebounds.
“He’s definitely important. Mark is a great player for us,” Hornets guard Nick Smith Jr. said. “Once we get everybody back, I feel like we could definitely use him more.”
The long list of injuries continues to impact the Hornets. Josh Okogie (hamstring) has joined the list of players missing games. Guard LaMelo Ball (ankle) has missed more than a week of action, with an update on his timetable near.
In the meantime, the Hornets are counting to find ways for incremental improvements.
“Their usual approach to come in and try to get better,” Lee said of the players.
Milwaukee’s unusual lineup Monday yielded few highlights, although AJ Johnson racked up a career-best 13 points in 29 minutes.
“We used this as a rest day for us,” Rivers said.
Milwaukee lost 115-114 on its first trip to Charlotte this season on Nov. 16. In a rematch a week later, the Bucks prevailed 125-119 at home despite 50 points from Ball. Antetokounmpo had 32 points and Lillard added 31 for the Bucks in that second meeting.
–Field Level Media
