Is Khris Middleton The NBA’s Most Improved Player?

While scoring has come at a premium for the Milwaukee Bucks this season, the team has still done a remarkable job hanging tough in the Eastern Conference playoff race despite being such a young team.

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The Bucks are filled with a lot of young talent at every position, which is fine for building for the future. However, before this season, the team also filled in some holes with veterans as well, including Jared Dudley, Jerryd Bayless and Zaza Pachulia.

Now that the team has had a mix of youth and leadership, the Bucks have enjoyed success and have been a surprise in a relatively weak conference.

But who has been the player that has most contributed to their success?

I’m very tempted to go with Giannis Antetokounmpo here because of the different things he can do on the floor including quality defense and timely rebounding.

With that being said, another player deserves the honor, someone who has helped a struggling offense get over the hump on multiple occasions.

Khris Middleton has been a scoring threat for a team lacking any true offensive firepower. Brandon Knight was the team’s best scoring option before the trade deadline, but with his move to the Phoenix Suns in a three-way deal, Middleton has had to step up as the leader on offense for the Bucks, and for the most part he’s done that.

Since the trade deadline, Middleton has averaged 19.8 points per game for the Bucks, a major improvement compared to his total season average of 13.1. It’s not that Middleton was shooting the ball poorly before, but he wasn’t getting the same kind of looks at the basket because of Knight’s role within the offense.

Middleton’s placement in the starting lineup lately has also been a part of it as well, as he hasn’t been the starting small forward or shooting guard all year. Head coach Jason Kidd has used a multitude of starting lineups, but it seems that the team runs most effectively on offense when Middleton is on the floor.

Middleton is a versatile offensive weapon because of his ability to score inside and out. While he’s great at creating a mismatch inside and posting up his defender, he can also stroke it from outside, as he’s shot 43.3 percent from three-point range on the season.

Middleton could improve his ball-handling ability to be more consistent driving towards the basket, but he’s still been able to display a nice mix of jump shots off the dribble in the mid-range, which is a sign of a true primary scorer. Being able to get your shot anywhere on the floor is crucial if you’re going to act as a team’s number one option. Middleton has done that and more, as he’s also held his own defensively.

Middleton has actually surprised Kidd with his willingness to guard bigger players. Middleton has been able to stand his ground against some bigger small and power forwards, allowing Kidd to experiment with different small-ball lineups to really create mismatches and focus on getting more points in bunches.

This season, Middleton has played anywhere from the two to the four, really showing his ability to move around the floor and cover as much ground as any player on the team. Coaches love versatility because it gives them options to work with, meaning that Middleton may end up being a keeper down the road.

With how Middleton has stepped up his offensive role and kept things together on defense for the Bucks, does he deserve to be in the race for the NBA‘s Most Improved Player award?

As much as he’s improved his game when you watch him, he hasn’t done enough with the numbers to really make a strong push at the award. Since he’s known more as an offensive talent, his 13.1 points per game are a little low for someone who’s trying to be recognized as an improved primary scoring threat. Yes, he’s had games with as many as 30 points multiple times, but voters have to take into account his performance over the entire season, which hasn’t seen that kind of production from start to finish.

If Middleton keeps improving his handle and continues to work on playing passing lanes and forcing turnovers on defense, then he should be in the running for the award next season. He’s a little late to the party this year, as there have been many deserving players who have played better for the entire length of the season.

If Middleton proves to be more than a good stats, bad team guy over the next few years, then he could really be ascending towards stardom in the NBA. Only time will tell on how he develops from here.

*Statistics courtesy of Basketball-Reference.

Next: Did the Bucks Make the Right Trade Deadline Move?

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