MADISON — The NBA lockout dragged on so long it’s possible
people forgot about the unsightly offense the Milwaukee Bucks had
during their dismal 2010-11 season.

Not Andrew Bogut.

“It was terrible,” the Bucks’ center said. “We just couldn’t
score.”

Indeed, the Bucks couldn’t shoot from the outside, couldn’t finish
inside, couldn’t score consistently from anywhere.

It was a shame, too, because Milwaukee continued to play the kind
of defense coach Scott Skiles demands. Had the Bucks not finished
dead last in the NBA in per-game scoring (91.9) and field goal
percentage (.430), they would have had a fighting chance to make a
second consecutive playoff appearance.

Instead, their win total fell from 46 to 35 and general manager
John Hammond spent still another offseason making wholesale
changes. John Salmons, Corey Maggette, Keyon Dooling and Chris
Douglas-Roberts are out; Stephen Jackson, Mike Dunleavy Jr., Beno
Udrih and Shaun Livingston are in.

The Bucks came out way ahead in that offseason shuffle of NBA
veterans, especially since the new guys are better fits offensively
with the Bucks’ cornerstones, Bogut and point guard Brandon
Jennings. The acquisitions are proven shooters, which were in short
supply in Milwaukee last season.

For the Bucks, who open their abbreviated season Monday night at
Charlotte, it’s pretty simple: If they can regain their shooting
touch, they will be a playoff team in the Eastern Conference. If
they don’t, Hammonds will be making more wholesale changes next
offseason.

Injuries also played a significant role in Milwaukee’s decline last
season. Bogut missed 17 games, Jennings 19, Ersan Ilyasova 22,
Carlos Delfino 33 and Drew Gooden 47.

But the Bucks still might have reached the playoffs if Salmons
hadn’t reverted to his career-long pattern of playing well, signing
a big contract and then forgetting how to score. On some nights,
the Bucks found themselves virtually devoid of scoring
options.

Players such as Maggette and Douglas-Roberts, who drive to the
basket for a living, found little room to operate with Bogut
setting up down low. And Bogut couldn’t play away from the basket
because complications with his surgically repaired elbow made his
right arm virtually useless and hindered his ability to shoot
anything but a layup or left-handed hook. The result was a horribly
dysfunctional offense.

“We’re so good defensively and we have an onus on defense and every
little detail on defense that I think we ourselves — not the
coaches, but we ourselves — carried that to offense,” Bogut said.
“At the offensive end we made it robotic, like we were defensively,
because we’re so good defensively. So the coaches weren’t teaching
that. We just picked that up. I think now we understand that we
need to be able to have a lot more freedom offensively. … We have
the talent right now that we should be able to score 100 points a
game.”

Another way for the Bucks to reach 100 per game would be to
generate more transition baskets from their stellar defense.

“Turnovers lead to easy transition baskets and I think we didn’t
take advantage of the turnovers that we forced to get easy
baskets,” Gooden said. “I think that’s something we’re going to
emphasize this year is getting out on the break and trying to get
four to six points on layups. That can win a lot of ballgames for
us.”

Actually, much more than that has to happen. Bogut must show he can
use his right hand again — he says his elbow is pain-free — and
not allow teams to overplay his left. Jennings must show
improvement on his shot after being basically the same player last
season that he was as a rookie. Delfino, Ilyasova and a
slimmed-down Gooden mostly have to stay healthy.

Unlike last year, when the new guys were supposed to help the
offense by going to the basket and drawing fouls, the new guys this
year will add something useful — namely, shooting. Jackson, a
notorious streak shooter, and Dunleavy, who moves well without the
ball, are proven wing scorers. As a backup point guard and
occasional playing partner with Jennings, Udrih could give Skiles
what Luke Ridour gave him so effectively two seasons ago.

“We’ve been what we thought we would be on paper,” Skiles said of
the offense. “We have a willingness to pass the ball, which is
good. We’ve got a bunch of guys that can put the ball on the floor
and make plays for somebody else. Our overall court vision is
better. We’re seeing open people and making nice plays. All that’s
very encouraging. We just have to work out some execution
things.”

An improved offense wouldn’t put the Bucks in a class with Miami,
Chicago, Boston and Orlando in the East, but it would probably put
them in the next tier of teams. Given good health, there’s no
reason that can’t happen.

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Contact Tom Oates at toates@madison.com or 608-252-6172.

—

(c)2011 The Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wis.)

Visit The Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wis.) at
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MILWAUKEE (AP) — Free-agent guard Mike Dunleavy Jr. was at the Milwaukee Bucks’ practice facility Friday, but had to watch the team’s first practice from courtside as he waited to sign his new deal.

The Bucks were waiting for the NBA to approve a pending trade that will send guard Keyon Dooling to the Boston Celtics before signing Dunleavy and their rookies. And with teams around the league seeking approval on contracts and trades in a post-lockout logjam, the Dooling trade still was unofficial when the team hit the court for practice.

The trade was finalized later Friday, with the Bucks sending Dooling and a protected second-round pick to the Celtics for the rights to forward/center Albert Miralles.

MILWAUKEE (AP)—Free-agent guard Mike Dunleavy Jr. was at the Milwaukee
Bucks’ practice facility Friday, but had to watch the team’s first practice from
courtside as he waited to sign his new deal.

The Bucks were waiting for the NBA to approve a pending trade that will send
guard Keyon Dooling to the Boston Celtics before signing Dunleavy and their
rookies. And with teams around the league seeking approval on contracts and
trades in a post-lockout logjam, the Dooling trade still was unofficial when the
team hit the court for practice.

“The unsigned players couldn’t go, we couldn’t sign them until Keyon’s
trade was official,” Bucks coach Scott Skiles said. “That’s all. We waited, we
waited, and figured we’d just start practice and maybe at some point they could
get going, but it just hasn’t gone through yet. So yeah, Mike will be fine
tomorrow, he’ll be ready to go.”

The trade was finalized later Friday, with the Bucks sending Dooling and a
protected second-round pick to the Celtics for the rights to forward/center
Albert Miralles.

First-round draft pick Tobias Harris, a forward from Tennessee, and
second-round pick Jon Leuer, a forward from Wisconsin, also had to watch
practice from courtside.

The Bucks also were without their main offseason acquisition for their first
post-lockout practice. Skiles said guard Stephen Jackson, who was obtained in a
three-way draft day trade, arrived in Milwaukee on Friday morning and his
physical examination didn’t get done in time for the start of practice.

“Not your typical first day,” Skiles said. “But nobody’s having a typical
first day.”

Skiles held a shorter and less intense practice than he typically would on
the first day of training camp.

“We had literally between three and five practice plans for today, based on
how many guys we were going to have,” Skiles said. “And we weren’t sure until
just a few minutes before, because we were made aware of what was going on with
Keyon’s trade, and that those guys weren’t going to be able to go until that got
put in motion. So we basically had nine guys. And tomorrow, we’ll have
everybody.”

Still, Skiles came away impressed with the way his players kept in shape.

That was a concern for every NBA team going into Friday, given that team
officials weren’t allowed to keep tabs on their players’ workout programs during
the lockout.

“It was good,” Skiles said. “I’m really pleased with the conditioning of
the guys. If we would have went through our regular first training camp
practice, which is a little more physical and longer, the guys would have gotten
through it fine.”

Skiles is looking forward to the addition of Dunleavy, who shot 46.2 percent
from the floor and 40.2 percent from 3-point range with Indiana last year.

“He’s going to be one of the best shooters, if not the best shooter, on our
team,” Skiles said. “And he can also make plays for other people. He’s a good
off the ball player, very good off the ball player with his cutting and spacing,
and he’s got a very high basketball IQ. All things we were trying to address.”

Guard Brandon Jennings said getting Dunleavy was a “big deal” for the
Bucks, who have dramatically reshaped their backcourt going into this season
with the additions of Jackson, Beno Udrih and Shaun Livingston.

“When he was out there in Indiana, he was a big key to their team,”
Jennings said. “He’s going to fit in really good here.”

Center Andrew Bogut said Dunleavy’s accuracy will add another dimension to
the Bucks.

“He’s a guy that’s got a higher basketball IQ,” Bogut said. “He’s played
for a couple of teams now. He can really shoot the basketball, which is what we
need.”

MILWAUKEE (AP)

The Boston Celtics have a deal in place to acquire veteran guard Keyon Dooling in a trade with the Milwaukee Bucks, Dooling’s agent tells The Associated Press.

Agent Kenge Stevenson says the deal will not be official until Friday. NBA owners and players ratified a new collective bargaining agreement Thursday, the final step to ending the five-month lockout and paving the way for training camps and free agency to open Friday.

Dooling played 80 games for the Bucks with 22 starts last season, averaging 7.1 points and three assists. He was the No. 10 overall pick out of Missouri in the 2000 draft.

It was not immediately clear what the Bucks would receive in return.

Multiple media organizations reported the deal earlier Thursday.

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Boston Celtics have a deal in place to acquire veteran guard Keyon Dooling in a trade with the Milwaukee Bucks, Dooling’s agent tells The Associated Press.

Agent Kenge Stevenson says the deal will not be official until Friday. NBA owners and players ratified a new collective bargaining agreement Thursday, the final step to ending the five-month lockout and paving the way for training camps and free agency to open Friday.

Dooling played 80 games for the Bucks with 22 starts last season, averaging 7.1 points and three assists. He was the No. 10 overall pick out of Missouri in the 2000 draft.

The Bucks are expected to receive a second-round pick in return.

Multiple media organizations reported the deal earlier Thursday.