In a season where a significant injury and roster shakeup have plagued a perennial Eastern Conference contender in the Boston Celtics, teams like the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers see this as a year in which they could reach the NBA Finals. 

The Milwaukee Bucks, who are the second most recent NBA champions from the Eastern Conference – defeating the Phoenix Suns in 2021 to secure the franchise’s second ever Larry O’Brien trophy – are in that category as well. 

The Bucks began their season at 4-1 and appeared primed to be in contention, but unfortunately now sit at 8-9 through the first month of games. And an injury to two-time MVP and 2021 Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo has only heightened the franchise’s troubles as of late. 

Milwaukee’s loss to the Detroit Pistons on Nov. 22 marked its fourth loss in a row. 

Guard AJ Green shared some insight into why Milwaukee fell to Detroit following the 129-116 contest and said the Bucks are successful when defense ultimately sets the table for their ensuing offensive efforts. 

“For us, it usually starts defensively,” Green said during a postgame interview. “If we can get stops and get out and play in transition a little bit, it kind of gets us going. But when we don’t get stops for consecutive possessions, I think that’s where then we can get stuck offensively. We don’t maybe execute as well. So it really comes down to that end of the floor."

Currently, the Bucks are just 22nd in overall defensive rating, so Milwaukee will definitely seek to improve its defensive efforts moving forward, as Green alluded to. 

Green has taken a significant jump this season in terms of his play. Last season, he averaged 7.4 points per game and only started in seven of the 73 games in which he played. 

This season, Green is averaging 11 points per game, and he has started all 17 of the Bucks’ games. He is also averaging a career-high in minutes per game with 28.6, which is almost a six-minute increase from last season.

Green is in year four of his NBA career, having missed the Bucks’ championship run by just two years. Now, he will be paramount to Milwaukee's run, should they make one, this postseason, given the way he’s played to start the season and stepped up when different Bucks players have gone down with injury, which includes Antetokounmpo, Kevin Porter Jr. and Taurean Prince. 

The Bucks’ next game is against the Portland Trail Blazers at 8 p.m. on Nov. 24.