Bucks general manager John Hammond is as down-to-earth as they come in his business, a basketball lifer made to work in such lunch pail locales as Detroit and Milwaukee rather than the glitz and glamour of Hollywood or New York.
So it should come as a surprise to no one that the local hardwood artisans have made news in this unique free agent sprint only by re-signing their own defensive stalwart and a veteran shooter born and bred to play pro hoops who just happened to spend a portion of his formative years in town.
Bringing back Luc Richard Mbah a Moute was a no-brainer, as I’d outlined here before the end of last season. The epitome of a “Skiles guy,” the 6’8” forward’s defensive abilities are top five in the NBA. He has been known to frustrate many a star in this league. You get the sense the Cameroon native would play the game for pennies, but four years and $18.7 million bucks are justified to avoid the cruel irony of him being coached by a guy who couldn’t get to the finals here because his players wouldn’t buy into defense. For that kind of money, Mbah a Moute will need to improve offensively, but that’s not a concern given his superb work ethic.
The Mike Dunleavy Jr. signing doesn’t have me thinking division title (landing Sacramento guard Marcus Thornton would have been preferable but also costlier), but he should add scoring punch, hopefully off the bench. If Dunleavy Jr. can stretch the floor by shooting a markedly better percentage than say, Keyon Dooling, Bucks’ fans may even forget his old man’s regrettable coaching tenure that was eclipsed only be the abject disaster that was his general management.
It’s highly doubtful these moves plus the acquisitions of Stephen Jackson and Beno Udrih will propel the Bucks past the Bulls or maybe even the suddenly relevant Pacers in the Central Division, but teams must crawl before they can walk in this league, and it’s hard to see the Bucks not improving offensively with this personnel. We know Skiles will demand defensive effort, and so far nobody seems worried about team cohesion with the excitable Jackson around.
If the latest chemistry experiment works and their bodies cooperate, there’s no reason the Bucks players shouldn’t think playoffs. You know Hammond is, and that should satisfy the fans more than any grandiose, false trade speculation ever could.
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