30 in 30: The Milwaukee Bucks are still the cream of the crop in the East

The importance of Khris Middleton

After what we saw transpire during the playoffs last season, I don’t think we can undervalue what Khris Middleton does for the Milwaukee Bucks or how important he is to the team’s success. If the Bucks are going to make another deep run in the playoffs this season, they’re going to need a healthy Middleton.

He takes a tremendous amount of pressure off of both Giannis and Jrue Holiday and is the second option that the Bucks simply couldn’t replace in the playoffs. For as good as Holiday is and was for the Bucks, he can’t fill the void that Middleton leaves when he’s injured or out of action.

Even in a “down” year, Middleton still managed to average 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists on 44 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent shooting from 3-point range.

The Bucks have one of the best rosters in the Eastern Conference. Though, if they’re going to reach their ceiling this season, they’re going to need to be at full strength. As we saw in the playoffs last year, if they’re not they won’t be able to reach their peak basketball.