The Team
And then there’s young Malcolm Brogdon, the second round steal from this past draft who has already set himself apart from an otherwise weak rookie class so far with his own all-around game (he’s the only rookie to log a triple double this year).
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His bench role and ability to mesh with Monroe, who is now being properly utilized off the bench, has brought depth to a second unit that had little to offer in the 2015-16 season, not unlike another member of that breakout OKC team, then-rookie James Harden.
When Khris Middleton and his floor-spacing ability returns from injury, the pieces are there for this team to put a scare into a first-round matchup, especially if they can move past the 7th or 8th seed range they currently occupy.
To say that Parker can become the MVP candidate that Westbrook is or that Brogdon can come close to approximating Harden’s absurd offensive output would be foolish. But to ask if they can take on the necessary roles to become similar complementary stars (and in Parker’s case, a likely future All-Star) to Antetokounmpo’s franchise savior is a fair question at this point, a question with a potential answer that should have Milwaukee Bucks’ fans salivating and Eastern Conference rivals fearing.
Is this team ready to make the leap like those early Thunder teams were able to do?