Damian Lillard clearly hasn’t had any trouble adjusting to life with the Milwaukee Bucks. The seven-time All-Star did have a forgettable performance in Milwaukee’s blowout loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday, but we can easily chalk that one off as an off night — especially considering how he’s averaged 32.0 points in the other two games he’s played for his new team.
Life hasn’t been as good for Khris Middleton, though. The 32-year-old is still recovering from a knee injury that required surgery this past summer. Unlike Dame, Middleton is still trying to find his groove, so to speak.
Khris Middleton Vocal on New Role for Milwaukee Bucks
From being the Robin to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Batman over the past several years, Middleton has now been relegated to a third option for Milwaukee now that Lillard is in the picture. It’s not that Middleton is complaining about the demotion, though. It’s just that by his own admission, this new role will just require some getting used to:
“It’s different from last year because last year I knew my role and I knew how to execute it,” he said, via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Jim Owczarski. “Now, it’s a little bit different role and I’m just trying to figure it out. I don’t think it’s a huge adjustment for me. It’s just picking my spots, figuring out where my open spots are going to be, figuring out where I can be aggressive, the times when I have the ball in my hands and the times where I can play off the ball and figure out how to get to that open space.”
Middleton did say that he doesn’t believe it’s going to be a major adjustment for him, which is actually true. The 6-foot-7 wing is still going to get his shots. In fact, he is expected to get more open looks with opposing defenses gravitating toward Giannis and Lillard.
As he said, it’s just about picking his spots.
No Complaints From Khris
Bucks fans can take solace in the fact that Middleton appears to be embracing his new role. He’s no longer Milwaukee’s No. 2 guy, and he doesn’t seem to have a problem with it. After all, winning remains to be the most important thing for the veteran sharpshooter.
“So it’s just watching film, playing, talking to these guys, and just trying to find the open spots out there, but it’s not like I’m coming in and I gotta be the Lou (Williams) or Jamal (Crawford), who would come in and get 30 (points) off the bench,” he continued. “It’s just find my role, play the game the right way and let the game come to me.”
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