As the Milwaukee Bucks ramp up for their season opener Thursday, fans have been hit with more injury news. Pat Connaughton missed the final two preseason games due to calf soreness. Following an MRI, Connaughton suffered a right calf strain. The cause of the injury is unknown but it appears the Bucks will be without Connaughton and Middleton for the first few weeks of the season.
Bucks say Pat Connaughton will be sidelined for approximately three weeks with a right calf strain.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 16, 2022
Who do the Bucks turn to?
Connaughton and Middleton are both pivotal to the Bucks success. Providing both injuries keep these players sidelined for roughly three weeks, that totals nine games. These injuries provide a chance for players such as recently resigned, Jordan Nwora and 24th overall pick, Marjon Beauchamp to get some early season minutes. Coach Budenholzer could also give Jevon Carter more run. Fans during the post-season were pleading with Coach Bud to turn Carter loose. Carter has performed well during this preseason as well.
Jevon Carter’s averages across Milwaukee’s 5 preseason games:
• 10.6 points
• 47.4% from the floor
• 52.2% from 3
• 3.6 assists
• 21.9 minutes pic.twitter.com/rtmKjdbHFd— Dalton Sell (@sell_dalton) October 13, 2022
Not only can Carter produce in the half court, he’s also a willing defender. Providing Jrue and Jevon are on the floor at the same time, that allows the Bucks great flexibility in their defensive scheme. With the eastern conference seeing an infusion of young guard talent, backcourt and wing depth will be instrumental in competing for a top seed.
What’s the Bucks’ schedule the first 3 weeks?
Milwaukee will kick off a primetime game against the Philadelphia 76ers Thursday night on TNT. Following that game, the Bucks have six straight home games. Those games come against the Rockets, Nets, Knicks, Hawks and two games against the Pistons. The Knicks and Hawks game is a back to back, however, if the Bucks can come away with four wins minimum during that stretch, that would be a successful home stand. Following the home stand, Milwaukee has a back to back against Minnesota and Oklahoma City. The schedule could be worse so given the teams we will play, we should be happy this is the stretch Middleton and Connaughton will miss.
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