Milwaukee Bucks: Grading the starters after 1 month of games

Center: Thon Maker

Fourteen games in, Thon Maker has started exactly half of those. John Henson, the team’s third center last year, has pushed his way into the starting lineup as Maker has struggled at times.

When Maker has been on the court, he has struggled to fill the role required of him. His benefit to the Bucks has been his ability to space the floor, giving Antetokounmpo room to work inside. Maker continues to take shots from outside, ranking in the upper-third among NBA bigs in 3-point attempts.

But Maker is not making shots, and defenses are beginning to ignore him despite his supposed stretch-status. His effective field goal percentage is just 49 percent, in the bottom quarter of all bigs. He’s shooting just 27 percent on non-corner 3s, and a shockingly bad 47 percent at the rim — inexcusable for a center.

Maker is still unleashing havoc with his long wingspan and quick feet on defense, including an elite steal percentage of 2.3 percent (top five percent of all big men). His main issue has been his propensity for fouling, averaging over five fouls per 36 minutes. That has kept him on the bench in foul trouble even when head coach Jason Kidd may wish to use him.

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John Henson is nothing special, but he has been more reliable than Maker this season. That’s a problem, because the Bucks need Maker to reach their ceiling. If his shot can start falling and he can play smarter on defense, there is a clear opportunity for him to regain his role and his rising trajectory.

Grade: C-