Ersan Ilyasova played overseas for three seasons after leaving after his rookie year for the Bucks. In 2006-07, Ilyasova played in 66 games (14 starts) for the Bucks in which he averaged 14.7 minutes, 6.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. But, this season he is playing much better for the Bucks and they hope he keeps up the good work. Ilyasova has played in 38 games (30 starts) for the Bucks this season and he is averaging 24.9 minutes, 11.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

The Milwaukee Bucks need to get forward Hakim Warrick on the court more, period. He has played in 29 games (6 starts) for the Bucks this season and he is averaging 22.0 minutes, 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Warrick is good enough to start and personally I think he’s a much better basketball player than Carlos Delfino is.

Andrew Bogut has been a good player in the NBA in his career but he has always been pretty injury prone. This season he started out gimpy but he has come on strong since getting back into the line-up. Bogut has played in 20 games (all starts) for the Bucks this season and he is averaging 33.9 minutes, 16.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.0 blocked shots per game. I know that many fans are going ga-ga over rookie Brandon Jennings but Bogut is the most important player on this team because you just can’t replace what he can do on a basketball court.

Back-up guard Luke Ridnour is providing a lot of offensive punch off the bench for the Bucks this season. Ridnour has played in 22 games (0 starts) for the Bucks this season and he is averaging 23.8 minutes, 11.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. He is also shooting a stunning 51.8% from the floor this year. He will continue to get big minutes off the bench if he keeps playing like he is right now as he has been a huge asset to the Bucks.

Brandon Jennings has been exciting to watch all season and has been playing great, especially for a rookie.  Whether it is Jennings stroking a three or setting up a nice dunk with a great dime, Jennings has been arguably the best rookie in the NBA this season.   Many did not see this coming, as Jennings was surpassed in the draft by six other guards before being taken at the 10th spot.  Jennings shot has been streaky as of late though, so is he still atop the rookie rankings?  See if he held off the Sacramento Kings’ Tyreke Evans in my list of Top Rookies in the NBA so far.

Ersan Ilyasova left the country to play basketball after his rookie year with the Bucks. He looks like a much improved player right now as he is earning a lot of playing time. Ilyasova has played in 16 games (8 starts) for the Bucks so far this season and he is averaging 24.0 minutes, 11.7 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. If Ilyasova keeps up the good work the Bucks will be better than anyone thought they could be.

A lot of hype has surrounded Brandon Jennings ever since the point guard decided not to go to college last year and instead, played professionally in Italy.  There were a lot of Jennings critics when he made this move, most notably college analysts like Dick Vitale.  As much as I love the college game, is the 1-year rule really in the best interests of the players?  I say no, as these talented players are not getting an “education” and are still treated like superstars on campus for one year before they jump to the pros.  His leadership has been questioned and he has gotten into some trouble for his “tweets” on Twitter, but this kid can play!  It looks like a year of professional basketball in Europe (which seemed to hurt his draft stock) better prepared Jennings for the NBA than any of the one-and-done players from college.  Jennings has been the best rookie by far this season, averaging 24.2 points, 5.7 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.0 steal while shooting 46% from the field and 48% from behind the arc.  Jennings is the reason the Bucks are 8-4 and he made headlines on November 14th when he dropped an astounding 55 points on the Golden State Warriors, a Bucks rookie record and the third highest for a rookie in NBA history.

Hakim Warrick is averaging 26.0 minutes per game off the bench so far this season. In those 26 minutes, Warrick is averaging 15.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steal per game. With Michael Redd out of action for a while due to injury the Bucks would be smart to move Warrick into the starting lineup to help the offense. Warrick owes his agent who picked the perfect team for him to sign with and the Bucks couldn’t be more happy with him.

Sure, Michael Redd is the best player on the Bucks….but point guard Maurice Williams makes the team go on offense. He has played in 31 games this season for the Bucks and he is averaging 36.8 minutes, 16.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He also has shot really well from all over the basketball court as he is hitting 48.2% from the floor, 39.4% from three point range and 84.3% from the free throw line.

Michael Redd has been outstanding this month for the Bucks. In 6 games this month Redd is averaging 38.3 minutes, 23.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game. If Redd starts to get more help on offense the Bucks will start winning more games…..but that’s a really big if.