Are The Milwaukee Bucks Really Ready To Rise?

Coming into the year, the tag-line for the Milwaukee Bucks was "Ready to Rise". After putting together their best performance of the year on Saturday night by destroying the L.A. Clippers, the marketing team may have been on to something.

The Bucks have won four of their last five games and should have won the fifth except for a fourth quarter meltdown against the 76ers. The average margin of victory in the four wins is 22.5 points. Simply put, the Bucks are blowing out the competition.

Naysayers might say that the Pacers, Heat, Knicks and Clippers aren't exactly stiff competition and they would be right. However, Bucks fans realize that these are the types of games that the Bucks would have lost in years past.

Michael Redd is healthy and it finally seems he has bought into the notion that he doesn't need to be the only option on offense. Redd is averaging 18.9 points a game, the lowest total in his career as a starter. He has bought into Scott Skiles' system and is moving the ball and making the extra pass to the open man.

Richard Jefferson has come in to Milwaukee and done an outstanding job. He held the team together when Redd and other Bucks missed time due to injuries. He and Redd are turning into a very nice 1-2 punch.

Luke Ridnour and Ramon Sessions are providing great play at the point guard position. I was quite skeptical about Ridnour to start the year but he seems to be flourishing with Skiles as head coach. He is leading the Bucks in assists and steals while scoring in double digits as well. Sessions constantly seems to be a spark plug off the bench and good things happen when he is in the game.

Although the Bucks are still three games under .500, the Bucks are starting to win on the road and showing a complete game at home as well. Six of their next nine games will be played at the Bradley Center, so they have a real shot at getting to .500 or over.

The Bucks have developed quickly under Scott Skiles and made it through a very difficult point of their schedule. The New Year should bring plenty of wins for the Bucks and hopefully a playoff appearance as well.