The Bucks got off to a slow start, but a recent five-game winning-streak may be a sign of what to expect from the Bucks this season. The season may be long, but the Bucks’ starters and bench players are starting to adjust to their roles on this team.

One of the main reasons for the Bucks starting to play better ball is the performance of Charlie Villanueva. Villanueva has provided great energy and is making big shots for the Bucks off the bench. He has been scoring more then 15 points per game over the last two weeks.

The other big factor has been Andrew Bogut staying out of foul trouble. Bogut has provided some big blocks and is scoring 15 or more points on a consistent basis. Bogut is also averaging almost 10 boards a game, and that is what the Bucks are going to need out of him if they want to continue to get better.

Any combination of Bogut, Villanueva and Yi are starting to provide the force you need in the paint. Those guys are finding each other in the post and are helping each other out on defense and coming up with blocked shots at key times in the game.

As for the guard play, Michael Redd is starting to spread the ball out to other players and this is providing high percentage shots for his teammates. He is still putting up a great deal of points per game but has shared the ball at critical times.

In the past he has taken some bad shots because he has a tendency to force shots at critical times and now is making the extra pass necessary to win consistently.

Mo Williams has done a good job of sharing the ball and knocking down the jump shots. Also, at the start of the season Bell was not making any shots and now is starting to knock down his three-point shots.

One of the guys that might be the x-factor to the Bucks becoming a good team is Royal Ivey, who had a couple big games including a 15-point performance against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The key to Ivey getting minutes is that he is allowing Redd and Williams to get more rest. He also has filled in nicely when one of the guards has come across early foul trouble.

It is very important to have a player like Ivey who can step in to be relied on when the starters are having an off night or are in foul trouble. The deeper the team is, the better the Bucks will be.

Overall, if the Bucks continue to play team basketball like they have lately, this team can make some noise come playoff time. Also, they need to start winning some road games if they want to get into the playoffs.

Home games have been an early season strength of the Bucks. They started the season 6-0 at home. Establishing a quality home record and trying to play .500 basketball on the road will decide how far the Bucks will go this season. It’s extremely early, so the main goal is to hope for more consistent winning streaks like the five-game winning-streak the Bucks have already accomplished.

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