Milwaukee Bucks: 3 Keys To Winning A Playoff Series

The Bucks have been struggling to the finish, but can they turn things around and win a first round playoff series?

The 2014-2015 Milwaukee Bucks have been full of surprises, but much like finding a lump of coal in your stocking at Christmas, they haven’t all been good.

The first surprise was the team overachieving early on in the year. The combination of young potential and veteran wisdom came together in a perfect storm to help the team play .500 basketball. They lost as much as they won, but the team was oozing excitement even on the nights they lost.

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The next surprise was the heartbreaking loss of the No. 2 overall draft pick, Jabari Parker, to the basketball gods who hand out cruel knee injuries. It’s frustrating to even start to consider how much he would have improved by this point in the season.

Most thought the excitement of the season would end on that fateful night in Phoenix, but the remaining group of players banded together to surprise again. The ensuing period of play was dominated by the Bucks’ role players. The attitude of next man up kept the team rolling despite multiple injuries to key contributors. It all peaked in an incredible stretch of basketball that saw the team win eight of nine games heading into the All-Star break.

None of these surprises prepared anyone for the trading of Brandon Knight at the trade deadline though. Bucks fans and even the players were caught off guard as the team sent their leading scorer packing to Phoenix.

The question now though is whether the Milwaukee Bucks — with their newly formed roster and late season struggles — can surprise one more time and win a playoff series.

Here’s what it’ll take to embrace the underdog role and upset their higher seeded opponent.

Next: The Right Playoff Opponent