Taylor Jenkins Wants to Get Myles Turner Going After Bucks’ Loss to Celtics

Myles Turner had one of his best passing nights in the NBA on Sunday. The Milwaukee Bucks still needed more scoring from him.

Turner finished with three points, five rebounds, seven assists and a block in Milwaukee’s 117-97 loss to the Boston Celtics at Fiserv Forum. He shot 1-for-8 from the field and missed all three of his attempts from beyond the arc as the Bucks dropped their sixth straight game and fell to 1-9. 

Afterward, Bucks coach Taylor Jenkins pointed to what Turner was already doing to help Milwaukee. The Bucks ran offense through him, his teammates kept trusting him with the ball, and he still gave Milwaukee a defensive presence around the rim.

“We definitely got to find a way to get him going on the offensive side,” Jenkins said. “I think his teammates are trusting him. He’s shooting open looks.”

Jenkins described Turner’s scoring struggles as a rough patch and pointed to his performance against Boston two games earlier as a reason for confidence. He also said he and Turner had already discussed sticking with the work through the slump.

There was a distinction in how Jenkins evaluated Turner’s misses. He was comfortable with the open shots Turner took and liked that the center had added more rolls to the basket, though he felt Turner had forced a couple of looks on those plays.

That gives Milwaukee two ways to keep him involved while he works through the slump. Turner can still space the floor, and the Bucks can give him chances to finish closer to the rim.

The seven assists also give Jenkins something to build on. When Turner gets the ball and a teammate has a better look, Milwaukee can keep the possession moving through him. If the defense gives Turner room to shoot, Jenkins wants him to take it. The Bucks need him comfortable making both reads.

Kyle Kuzma led Milwaukee with 27 points and made six 3-pointers. Boston had two players reach 20, with Paul George scoring 27 and Jayson Tatum adding 21 to go with six assists. 

Jenkins liked how the Bucks opened the game but singled out the end of the first quarter and much of the second as the stretch where it got away from them.

Milwaukee found some offensive rhythm again after halftime. By then, the Bucks were playing from behind, and Jenkins said they needed to string together stops to keep those stretches from deciding games.

Turner’s role touches both problems. Jenkins credited him with making opponents think twice about attacking the rim, a contribution that goes beyond the one block in the box score. At the other end, a few more made shots from Turner would give Milwaukee another scoring option when the offense stalls.

“He’s also been the first person to say, ‘Hey, if I’m not grooving on the offensive side, I got to find other ways to impact it,’” Jenkins said.