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Doc Rivers says the five-game road trip 'was brutal' for the Milwaukee Bucks

Doc says the five-game road trip was brutal.

Matthew Dugandzic

© Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
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Milwaukee’s five-game road trip turned out unproductive, as the Bucks won just once during the stretch that was capped by a 106-114 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.

A brutal schedule

Going 1-4 during the trip was somewhat expected, according to coach Doc Rivers, who said the trip was physically demanding. The road trip started in Denver and then featured back-to-back games in Dallas and Utah.

“The Utah game, you kind of knew...you know the altitude, back-to-back. I mean, whoever scheduled a Dallas-Utah has never been on the airplane in their life or no time zones. That was just a tough one. We knew that, I guarantee you, when they looked at that before the year started, they were like, this was going to be a brutal game for us,” Rivers said.

The Bucks won in Dallas on Saturday night, 129-117, then lost to Utah the next night, 108-103. Milwaukee was depleted against the Suns when Damian Lillard (ankle) and Brook Lopez (personal reasons) sat out. Khris Middleton only played eight minutes against the Suns after twisting his ankle late in the first quarter.

Four-game homestand coming up

Rivers said the Bucks were obviously fatigued playing the last assignment of the five-game road trip, and the injuries to their key players compounded their woes.

“End of a trip, legs..you can just see it. We got a lot of injuries right now, so guys are playing more extended minutes, and you know what, they’re playing harder on defense. It’s probably all that,” said Doc.

Milwaukee will take a one-day break and then play four straight games at home. The Bucks have fallen to third place in the Eastern Conference with a 33-18 record, and the upcoming friendly schedule may just be the break that they need to get back on track. 

Damian Lillard sits out vs. Suns as injury woes hit the Milwaukee Bucks

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Matthew Dugandzic
MATTHEW DUGANDZIC

Matthew finished his bachelor's degree in Economics (Management) at the University of Split and got his master's degree in the same field at the University of Zadar. Whether it is playing the game as an undersized 6'3'' power forward or simply watching it, Matthew can't get enough of it. After all, he has been an avid NBA fan since the 2000s. But don't get him wrong, as Matthew still loves the old-school NBA and is a true student of the game. From on-court moments to off-court stuff, whether it's about the stars of modern-day basketball or legends of the game, Matthew covers every category of the NBA world and basketball in general, as long as it makes for an engaging and exciting story.