Milwaukee Bucks were without Giannis Antetokounmpo for the third straight game. The shorthanded version of the Bucks feels like a theme all season. They’ve had games without Jrue Holiday, Bobby Portis, and now Giannis. When Milwaukee is a full unit, they’ve only lost nine games. Bucks fought hard in this one, but they ran out of gas late. Dallas overwhelmed Milwaukee beating the Bucks by 19 points in the fourth quarter. This was a frustrating one more so because the Mavericks are an annoying bunch.

1. Khris Middleton’s awful night – Not the night for Khris Middleton. He went 6-for-27 from the field. This feels like an excessive amount of shots for Midds. I have no problem with him being the man, but it seems like that’s a bit excessive. Now if no one else wants to shoot and Middleton is the one, by all means. We could spin zone this a bit, and say it’s a good thing that Middleton is showing the ability to be the aggressor even if shots are not falling.

2. Jrue Holiday keeps getting the shaft on foul calls – On Tuesday night, Jrue Holiday got a phantom offensive foul called against him. On Thursday night, Milwaukee got a phantom call against him when Kristaps Porzingis tripped over his own goofy fucking feet. That foul call isn’t the reason that the Bucks lost this game, but it gave Dallas an extra possession. Milwaukee should have gotten a turnover and started the break. I don’t think the refs are against the Bucks, but the last two nights have been bad officiating games. When that happens, you get on edge as a fan.

3. Donte DiVencenzo has to be smarter – Donte DiVencenzo does some nice things on the court. But if he wants to be involved in the final five minutes of a playoff game, he has to smarter. Milwaukee is down five, started a break with Donte and Holiday. All DiVencenzo needs to do is give Porzingis a pump fake and maybe he draws a foul or an easy basket. Instead, he tries a behind-the-back pass to Holiday which leads to a turnover and a Porzingis three. Milwaukee never got closer than five points.

Next up: Milwaukee turns around and plays again tonight against Charlotte at home. It’s Milwaukee’s only home game in the next week or so. It’s a brutal stretch. Charlotte is not the same team they were when the Bucks met earlier this year. No Gordan Hayward or LaMelo Ball. They do have talent with Malik Monk and Terry Rozier who both have lit the Bucks up before.

Charlie.