2010-2011 Finish: 55-27

What went well

Just like the WWE, the NLL has heroes and villains. And the team we all love to hate is the Milwaukee Bucks and their Machiavellian GM Badwolf. Perennially good and loaded with hot players, the Bucks are chameleonic in the way they can adapt, no matter what hardship comes along.  

2010-11 was a season of transition and wheeling and dealing for Badwolf, tossing players from his aerie with a more rapid acceleration than usual. Still smarting from a major upset by the New Jersey Nets the season before, Badwolf was out for blood and he was going to tinker until his team was perfect. Or else.

So in a flurry of preseason deals, Thaddeus Young, Brandan Wright and Morris Peterson left town and they got Paul Pierce to man the three spot. Decent deal. Then they ripped off Orlando taking Gerald Henderson and a 2nd for BJ Mullens and Derrick Caracter (ORL seems to get ripped off a lot). Next, Badwolf dropped a ton of GM points to bring in Al Harrington. Then they sent DeAndre Jordan, Kelenna Azubuike and a couple of second rounders to Los Angeles for Cole Aldrich and Elliot Williams and a 1st rounder. Finally, Badwolf hypnotized Utah GM Proid out of his 1st rounder and Udonis Haslem for Chris Andersen.

But the Bucks started the season poorly and Badwolf is a man who cannot abide losing. He quickly recognized the weak spots in his roster and stayed up nights crafting ways to rip-off unsuspecting GMs to make the Bucks contenders again. It worked. He moved fan favorite and oft-injured Andrew Bogut to the Spurs along with Gary Forbes and Trevor Booker for Al Horford and Corey Maggette. Then he nabbed another first rounder and Mike Miller from the Nuggets.

The team was complete and the Bucks finished in the third seat slot. Behind an outstanding series by Pierce, they swept the hapless Celtics in the first round. It looked like the Bucks would gore everyone.

What went worse

The Bucks ran into the hot Wizards and got knocked out in the 2nd round in five games. Jason Terry and Pau Gasol proved too much and the Bucks went home early. A hole still exists in the locker room wall where Badwolf punched it following Game Five.

Stars

- Russell Westbrook- G

The draft day swap of Westbrook for Jeryd Bayliss will remain one of the biggest headscratchers in NLL history and the Bucks continue to benefit from that past ORL GM's blunder. With Pierce jacking shots, Westbrook scored less this season than his first two, but his assists numbers are up as well as his rebounds.


- Al Horford- F

Horford struggled this season in SA but his numbers really improved once he moved to Milwaukee. And unlike Bogut, Horford actually plays!

Goats


- Mike Miller- G

This guy seems to be always hurt and yet he always makes big bucks. Not worth the full MLE any longer. Badwolf will have to sweet talk someone into taking him next season as his four year deal is pretty killer. Maybe even amnesty him.

Looking to the future

The Bucks continued to wheel and deal during the trade, swapping picks to get a higher place in the proceedings. They also shipped Haslem out to the Raptors in exchange for Rodrique Beaubois. The Bucks come into the new season with a stacked roster, but with salary issues. Re-signing Horford alone will push him into tax territory. But there is also a rumor that Horford and Jrue Holiday are being shipped out for Dirk Nowitzki. So we'll see.

The Bucks should also consider moving Maggette, Harrington and Miller. That's too much money off the bench, especially for declining players. Just don't send him your first rounder.

At pick 16, the Bucks gambled on forward Tobias Harris. He is athletic but can't really score. They also picked up Markieff Morris, another defense-minded forward and the very raw, but potential-filled Cory Joseph.

Stay tuned. I'm sure we will see plenty more trading from the evil empire of Milwaukee.