Milwaukee Bucks: 3 big questions heading into 2019-20

3. Which version of Eric Bledsoe will rise to the surface?

Let’s compare two players:

• Player A: 15.9 points per game, 4.6 rebounds per game, 5.5 assists per game on 48.4 percent shooting from the field, 32.9 percent from deep.
• Player B: 13.7 points per game, 3.7 rebounds per game, 4.3 assists per game on 41.1 percent shooting from the field, 23.6 percent from deep.

Given the opportunity to choose between those two players to join your team, you’d pick the first one, right? Player A is 2018-19 regular season Eric Bledsoe. Player B is the same Eric Bledsoe, except in playoff form.

In March of 2019, Bledsoe and the Bucks agreed to a four-year, $70 million contract extension. The point guard was in his second year with the team and had performed well enough to warrant a long-term commitment. Finishing the season 30th among all starting guards in points per game and 19th in assists, a $17.5-million-per-year contract didn’t seem like a bad deal.

Enter Player B. Bledsoe shot out of the gates with an impressive performance in Milwaukee’s first-round sweep of the Detroit Pistons but quickly saw his play regress to an abysmal level:

• Round 1: 19.3 points per game. Shot 52.5 percent from the field, 31.6 percent from deep.
• Round 2: 13.4 points per game. Shot 43.1 percent from the field, 25.0 percent from deep.
• Round 3: 10.2 points per game. Shot 29.4 percent from the field, 17.2 percent from deep.

Instead of Bledsoe stepping his game up when the Bucks needed him the most, both his scoring and efficiency took a huge slide. Set to turn the dreaded age of 30 in December, the Milwaukee front office will be hoping this was an anomaly — and not a trend.