Bucks too deep? ;)

[Kings113]

JS Online - Terry Stotts hears the suggestions from those calling for more playing time for one player or another, and the Milwaukee Bucks ' coach has a simple response:

"It's 240 minutes," he said. "And that's generally when whoever - whether it's an assistant (coach) or a fan or somebody - says so-and-so should be playing more, the question is, OK, for whom? Because those minutes have to come from somewhere. It's easy to say someone should play more, but at the expense of whose minutes?"

Stotts admits that the team's rotation is a work in progress, but stresses that he's continuing to try to settle on a nine- and possibly 10-man rotation.

The starting five of T.J. Ford, Michael Redd, Jamaal Magloire, Joe Smith - when healthy - and Bobby Simmons has pretty much been set. Andrew Bogut and Mo Williams are constants off the bench.

But after that, the playing time for Jiri Welsch, Charlie Bell, Toni Kukoc and Dan Gadzuric has depended on injuries, the opponent, foul trouble and which way the wind is blowing.

Ervin Johnson has solidified his role as the team's 12th man.

The Bucks pride themselves in the team's depth and Stotts is trying to take full advantage of it.

http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/38101/20051127/stotts_still_figuring_out_bucks_rotation/

 

[Bricklayer]

No need for the . The Bucks "priding themselves on their depth" is roughly as useful as us doing so. It creates a mess and chemistry problems in excess. You need 8 guys really. A solid 9th is welcome, but may not play that much. Anything beyond that falls into the "luxury" category, and even the problematic category if those deeper guys are people expecting minutes.

I would go Ford/Redd/Simmons/Bogut/Magliore, then go Williams 1/2, Welsch 2/3 Smith 4/3 Gadz 4/5 off the bench. And that would have to be absolutely it, depending on Williams getting minutes because of Ford's erraticness, and Gadz/Smith because Bogut isn't ready for 35 a night yet. But there's just no room at all to be going even deeper with Bell, Kukoc or whatever. Then everybody just gets confused about their roles and unhappy.

 

[Kings113]

Agreed, Brick.