What we learned from the Milwaukee Bucks' loss to the Denver Nuggets

Doc Rivers preached patience as he gets up to speed on the Bucks' system.

Jonas Panerio | Jan 30, 2024

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The Milwaukee Bucks' first game under new head coach Doc Rivers did not get off to a victorious start as they fell to the reigning champions Denver Nuggets, 113-107, on Monday. Here are two takeaways from the back-and-forth game.

Getting the hang of it

Doc has only been with the Bucks for a few days, so naturally, it might take him some time to get comfortable with the team and their playing style. Some fans may have expected an instant turnaround, but it's important to remember that chemistry and understanding between players and coaches take time to develop.

After the game, Doc admitted he leaned on assistants Joe Prunty and DJ Bakker for the play calls as he's still familiarizing himself with the Bucks' system.

"I know for a while it's going to be tough, especially offensive calls. I had to turn to Joe (Prunty) and DJ (Bakker) a lot because me and (Dave Joerger), what's that play where Bobby (Portis moves); it's going to take a minute. I mean, I've watched our offensive 50 times over the last two days, yet it's still just going to take time to have the right rhythm, to make the right calls," Doc said.

Tough one. pic.twitter.com/MY7yYsBZxE
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) January 30, 2024

Defense comes alive

The Bucks' defense has been an enormous disappointment all season. Against the Nuggets, it was what kept them in the game. According to veteran two-guard Khris Middleton, the team fought as hard as possible against the reigning champs.

"I thought guys fought. We helped out whenever there was a mismatch; we were able to kick guys out. But then, for the most part, I think our team defense was great. They're a great team with cutters; find the open man for the three, Jokic does a great job of keeping everybody involved."

I think, for the most part, we stayed to bodies. Had a couple mistakes, but they're a hard team to guard. To hold them to low 100s, I thought that was great. Our defense helped us when our offense was looking to get going," Middleton said.