For those unfamiliar, this is a new blog post we’re doing on Monday. We set the table for the week for the Milwaukee Bucks. You know about Bucks Buzz, the recap post, but here’s this week in Bucks where you get ready for the week. Too many times I’ve had to look at my ESPN app to see what the schedule looks like this week for Milwaukee. It’s tough to keep everything straight. Therefore, I’m here to help you out. Interesting week for Milwaukee that features two road games with a the first return visitor to the Fiserv Forum on Wednesday night.

What happened this weekend?
Bucks went 1-1 with a great comeback win against the San Antonio Spurs and a disappointing loss to the Phoenix Suns. Not ideal, but a 4-2 homestand is fine with me any way you slice it. Saturday was great for Milwaukee from a confidence standpoint. The team has not lost two straight games, and whenever there’s a possibility of that happening, Bucks fight like hell to avoid it.

This week’s slate
Monday: At Charlotte – Bucks return to Charlotte where they opened the year against the Hornets. They seem to play to their competition this season. Charlotte lost last night to Atlanta on the road which is their second really bad loss of the month with the other being against Cleveland. Hornets have played better teams tough this year. Hornets will be playing their third back-to-back of the year. They’ve won the back half the first two times.

Wednesday: vs. Chicago – We’ll put in the things to watch, but curious about this one considering what happened against Phoenix last week. Crowd might be a bit different for Jabari Parker due to it being a normal Wednesday night, not a drunk late Friday crowd. We’ll see if Chicago can give Milwaukee a game again.

Saturday: at New York – Nice little late afternoon game for the Bucks. Giannis Antetokounmpo loves Madison Square Garden like most NBA athletes. He always seems to shine there. We remember the big dunk on Tim Hardaway last year. Knicks are a scrappy team. They gave Milwaukee a game a few weeks ago, and won three straight with wins over Boston, New Orleans and Memphis. We’ll see if that heater continues for New York.

Things to Watch
Bucks need to get healthy – Injuries are starting to mount for Milwaukee. On Saturday, Milwaukee missed two players off their bench – Donte DiVencenzo who is still battling a quad injury and Ersan Ilyasova who had a knee injury flare up. We’ll see if either guy can go for Milwaukee on Monday night. Losing both Donte and Ersan takes a ton of energy off the bench.

Step on their throats – Giannis and others commented on how the Bucks need to stop toying around with bad teams. We’ll see if he can put his play where his mouth is this week. Chicago and New York are both inferior opponents. Milwaukee should be able to dispose of both early on, and if they don’t, you’ll see a narrative about Milwaukee playing down to their opponents.

Go Bucks

Charlie.