The Milwaukee Bucks entered the Fiserv Forum for the first time since winning the NBA Championship in Game 6 of the Finals, welcoming 7,500 fans to an open scrimmage on Sunday afternoon.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Donte DiVincenzo, Rodney Hood and Semi Ojeleye did not attend the session, which was attended by two teams trained by assistants Darvin Ham and Charles Lee. Bobby Portis left the scrimmage early, which suggested he felt something in his left hamstring muscles.
Lee’s “white” team won, 53-50, despite a rally by Ham’s “black” team, with Jordan Nwora missing a binding three-pointer from a feed from Jrue Holiday as time ran out.
“I would say it has been a very intense, competitive group since the first day of training camp,” said Lee. “I think everyone has the mindset, yes we did great things last year, but how can we keep that up and continue to build on it? I think with the new group of guys we have and the old generation of guys, there is just still that level of competition for everyone that is really cool to watch.
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“Even if you get into an environment like this that you used to be in training, but now you open it up to the fans and are they going to take it seriously?” And I think you saw today that these guys were really behind to the last horn. I love what we have in the competitiveness of this group. “
Ham created the game after a timeout that allowed Holiday to determine if Grayson Allen cut into a corner or Nwora would be the better option.
“I was able to take a look, just didn’t make it, but it felt good to know that Jrue had the confidence in me to take this shot even though it was just a scramble,” said Nwora, a sophomore guard hoping to earn significant minutes this season. “It was still good to know that he trusts me, that I’m trying to connect the game with the fans here. We played to win so it was good. If we hadn’t started so slowly, it would have been good. The first quarter was a bit rough. “
The shot crowned a double-digit comeback for Ham’s squad, which Holiday called after the second quarter when he took the microphone on half-pitch and said, “The black team will be back.” He stared at Lee’s huddled group for a reaction and repeated it – at last he got a nod from George Hill.
“I feel like we’re making a competitive environment out of it,” said Holiday of his good-natured trash talk. “I’m going against Khris, Khris against Giannis, things like that. I have the feeling it starts at the top … “
Middleton walked past, then leaned over and interrupted Holiday, “Comeback failed!”
That couldn’t be the last word, however.
“It didn’t fail,” replied Holiday, holding two fingers close together. “It didn’t fail. We were there.”
“It’s a loss!” Middleton called on his way into the locker room.
Despite Middleton’s illustration of this competitiveness, Holiday ended his thought.
“I think that at the beginning there can be a competition especially with the two (Antetokounmpo and Middleton),” he said. “We have guys who are still trying to form a team, guys who play for minutes, it becomes competitive. I think first and foremost we want to be competitive this season and show people that last year wasn’t a coincidence – we’re here to play basketball. “
There were a few elements the Bucks wanted to take away from five-on-five as they prepare to head to Memphis on Tuesday for the start of the preseason. One was the added adrenaline rush that comes with competing with spectators.
“It’s been a short summer for these guys. To finally get back on the pitch and play some five-on-five, it was great to have some of our fans here just to get back into the flow of things”, said Hill called. “It’s bigger than just an open crowd. It gives the guys a chance to open their lungs a little better, get some kind of in-game type setting and things like that. But try to stay healthy and prepare for the season at the same time. “
The other has been the continued growth of young players like Nwora, draft picks Georgios Kalaitzakis and Sandro Mamukelashvili and a few other players looking to either complete the NBA roster or secure a G League chance.
“We’re working our bums off, man with our vitamins – our individual work – our group work and our entire team are just working to get these guys on the same page and harmonize them, on the same side with the way.” we do things around here, ”said Ham. “And that does everything. You have to defend, you have to ricochet, you have to run, you have to know the distance, you have to be able to move the ball.
“I think our young people, the love and care we show these guys on and off the pitch opens them up. They know that the people are there, really there, to help them not only become better professionals but also better people. “
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