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Eric WoodyardESPN
Two top players will be absent from the Milwaukee Bucks lineup when the team with the NBA’s best record hits the court this week for the long-awaited restart.
Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer confirmed that Eric Bledsoe and Pat Connaughton will miss Friday’s game against the Boston Celtics as they continue to return to the form of the game after testing positive for the coronavirus.
Both players participated in Thursday’s practice, but entered the bubble late after successfully removing NBA mandatory quarantine periods.
“It’s a little bit of conditioning, a little bit of rhythm and everything,” Budenholzer said. “Everyone else is getting ready to play a live game and they’ve had 10-12 to 14 days of probably 5v5 every other day and individual work and all of that, so I think giving Bled and Pat a couple 5- a minimum of 5 sessions and get a 3 against 3 in other situations or days. They just need to play, so I think it is a great obstacle, and with the game will come both conditioning and rhythm, so we will make sure that they get some of that before putting them in an NBA game. “
Bledsoe and Connaughton also missed all three Milwaukee scrimmage games, in which the team ended 2-1. The Bucks will miss the two guards more defensively. Bledsoe was named to the 2019 NBA First Defensive Team.
Milwaukee ranks first in efficiency and defensive pace, and could join the 2014-15 Golden State Warriors champion as the only teams to rank first in both categories, as play-by-play was first recorded in 1996-97. , according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
“Obviously, Eric and Pat are great players who bring a lot to the team on defense, both and offense,” said Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo. “They are super aggressive, they can take shots, but at the end of the day, we have to do what we have to do. We have to go out there and compete, and I think boys are going to step up.”
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