Dangerous deer, dudes. (And lady-dudes / everything in between)

Marquee match-up, men. (And women / everything in between)

Keepin' the seat warm for Barton, who seems to be in a best case time-frame in terms of returning from an injury that required surgery. He should be back in the lineup by around December 15th.

Nuggets vs Milwaukee: They're Deer. They're here. Thankfully there's no need to get used to it.

When last these two teams squared off in game 77 of last season, Denver enjoyed double figure TPM contributions from three players led by Trey Lyles +19, Jamal Murray +23 (more on that later) and Paul Millsap +29. Four players were in the red for that encounter, led by Mason Plumlee -5, en route to a thrilling 128-125 overtime victory, in which Jamal stole the ball form Jason Terry and was fouled at the end of regulation whilst attempting a three, calmly sunk them all in the pressure cooker and sent it to overtime. He scored 18 of his 27 points after the third quarter. Jokic had a final line of 35-13-5 with three blocks. He ALWAYS plays well against this team, previously setting the all-time NBA record for fastest 3D against the Bucks in game 58 of last season. Millsap contributed a stellar 26-13-5 of his own while playing his trademark stellar D. Every bit of this output was needed in order to counter the outstanding play of Parker and Bledsoe, who combined for an INSANE line of 66-15-8. Meanwhile, The Greek Freak and Middleton contributed a ho-hum 33-21-9 combined. Denver shot 22 free throws in the second quarter alone, while Milwaukee shot 27 for the entire game.

ESPN illustrated an interesting side-note to Murray's play at the end of regulation

Murray didn't need to guess when he stole the ball at the end of regulation. He had some inside info to help him pull off the game-saving play.

"Jason Terry kind of gave it away," Murray said. "I heard him saying he was going to go up and I kind of stayed on his high side. I was able to get into the passing lane."

Murray is the team's best free-throw shooter at 90 percent, and he calmly drained all three attempts.

As for this game, as stated previously, while there are a bevvy of fantastic players involved in this showdown, the Marquee (I'll take a lap) Match-up is obviously Big Honey vs Freaky Greeky. Giannis can safely be described as a superstar while Jokic is himself more appropriately characterized as a rising star IMHO, in the highly subjective and often hyperbolic status-symbol culture of the NBA. Anteto... The Greek Freak is having an MVP caliber season, with averages of 25.7 points, 13.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists & 1.36 blocks/steals respectively, on .539 shooting from the floor. He's not a stellar three point or free throw shooter, nor does he particularly need to be as this team has no shortage of them surrounding him. Meanwhile, they can expect average to well above average output from the remaining starters, Middleton and Bledsoe in particular. They sport a mighty fine bench squad where Ersan Ilyasova is a decent rebounder who's capable of catching fire from distance on any given night. Veterans are available to step in when needed in the form of Delly, Snell and Henson and even the youngsters, Cono... Pat... and Di... Donte, have shown early season signs of promise. Christ, the names on this team! Speaking of which ironically, they seem to have missed on Maker.

The Bucks are at the tail end of a four game road trip (2-2) and on the second night of a B2B, having dealt with the true home-court advantage in which Denver decidedly possesses; the early am trek from DIA (located roughly in Kansas) to the non-annexed portion of Denver proper. Lopez, while not particularly standing out statistically thus-far in the season, has traditionally been a tough match-up for The Joker who prefers to defend closer to the basket though last game aside, He's shown to be slightly more adept this season as a defender in open space. With that said, the good Lopae bro is coming off of a game in which he stuck 6 threes so Jokic has his work cut out for him in what on paper is otherwise the most favorable match-up for the good guys.

Prediction: Denver 121 - Milwaukee 119

Go Nuggets!

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If you are viewing the pre-game version of the TPM piece; and you enjoy Gonzo-basketball reporting, I invite you to please join me after the game where the same link will lead you to the post game version. In it, all of the disjointed/unsightly blanks below will be filled, complete with data/analysis and more snark than "Snarknado VI: Snakenado", which I'm told is about a pessimistic, albino, black mamba who emerges from micro-bursts to torment the people of Los Angeles with shady tweets.

There be monsters; shameless, personal plug alert! (by permission of Denver Stiffs): If you are in the market for clothing, featuring the four major Denver sports franchises as well s CU, please open this link in a new tab to see if there is anything you are interested in. You don't have to order from the link of course if you are in the Denver Metro area, as I'm more than happy to meet up with you (please refrain from bringing rotten tomatoes), drastically lowering the cost, as Poshmark takes a healthy cut as well as shipping & handling. Thanks in advance!

Unique, hard to find, one of a kind and custom gear of your favorite team

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And now what none of you come here for; how about some basketball nerdery?!?!

(After these messages... Er Nicknames)

Milwaukee Bucks Roster

Denver Nuggets Roster

Update: MPJ and I.T. are sleeping on Ice, awaiting intel as to when their services will be required. Rookie Jared Vanderbilt will have to wait to make his rookie debut until long after R.O.Y. candidate Thomas Welsh, as he recovers from an actual injury. Millsap is probable tonight with an ankle injury. Finally, Barton had successful surgery on his abductor and hip. He will be evaluated for return in mid-December. As for Milwaukee, Trevon Duval (eye ailment) & D.J. Wilson (hammy) are both questionable.

Re-up: Malone finally relents. Juancho is in for Craig in the starting lineup!

Data: Open this link in a new tab for the definition of TPM™

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TPM™ Game 13 MIL

Jamal Murray: +6

Isaiah Thomas: N/A

Monte Morris: +26

Gary Harris: +12

Malik Beasley: +3

Torrey Craig: N/A

DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell: N/A

Will Barton: N/A

Juancho Hernangomez: -2

Michael Porter Jr.: N/A

Jared Vanderbilt: N/A

Paul Millsap: +29

Trey Lyles: +9

Tyler Lydon: N/A

Nikola Jokic: +10

Mason Plumlee: +0

Thomas Welsh: N/A

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Total TPM™

Jamal Murray: 13 games +191

Isaiah Thomas: 0 games +0

Monte Morris: 13 games +174

Gary Harris: 13 games +185

Malik Beasley: 12 games +30

Torrey Craig: 11 games -11

DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell: 3 games -2

Will Barton: 2 games +33

Juancho Hernangomez: 12 games +10

Michael Porter Jr.: 0 games +0

Jared Vanderbilt: 0 games +0

Paul Millsap: 13 games +114

Trey Lyles: 13 games +99

Tyler Lydon: 4 games +1

Nikola Jokic: 13 games +238

Mason Plumlee: 13 games +77

Thomas Welsh: 3 games -1

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Avg. TPM™ Per Game

Jamal Murray: +14.69

Isaiah Thomas: N/A

Monte Morris: +13.38

Gary Harris: +14.23

Malik Beasley: +2.50

Torrey Craig: -1.00

DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell: -0.67

Will Barton: +16.50

Juancho Hernangomez: +0.83

Michael Porter Jr.: N/A

Jared Vanderbilt: N/A

Paul Millsap: +8.77

Trey Lyles:+7.62

Tyler Lydon: +0.25

Nikola Jokic: +18.31

Mason Plumlee: +5.92

Thomas Welsh: -0.33

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TPM™ Per-Minute Splits Through Game 11:

*Credit DomP on the Spreadsheet. It's as if my (nerdy) baby (TPM™) learned to speak

Analysis:

Qtr1- The Nuggets trot out their post-Craig (RIP) injury-replacement starting five, consisting of The Blue Arrow, Just Gary Harris, Juancho "The Mouthful" Hernangomez, The Anchorman & Big Honey. The Bucks counter with a sensational starting squad consisting of Bledsoe, Brogdon, Middleton, Antetokounmpo & Lopez. Lions and tigers and Deer... oh my! I came close to going with "starting six" for alliteration purposes; an allusion to this team's extreme length but alas, it'd have required a superfluous explanation such as this.That just won't do. Moving right along. As I await shipment of my Will Barton and Trey Lyles "Salute To Service" Nuggets jerseys, tonight I don my Antonio McDyess USA Olympic jersey in honor of veterans day. FYI I purposely buy duplicates of all jerseys, one to wear, one to remain unopened for sale. Enough with the shameless pluggery.

The opening tip goes to Milwaukee which I've only recently learned means absolutely nothing. Lt Colonel Robert Gombos may be the only man in the building who more closely resembles the guy from "Up" than does Marlowe. ILP, get to work! Big Honey starts the scoring on a three. He's focused as he generally is vs the Bucks. The Nuggets lead 10-7 at 7:54. Jokic misses two straight J's and he can not allow that to make him gun-shy. Milwaukee takes the lead with a Lopez three at 6:17. Harris earns his 2nd foul and he's replaced by Morris at 6:04. Jokic sticks another three and he's the first Nugget to reach double figures in scoring. It's even-Steven at 24 with 2:45 to go. 'Sap sticks two straight from distance as he joins The Joker in double digits and the Nuggets lead by three in a shoot-out. The Nuggets are paced in TPM by Jokic +10 & Morris/Millsap +11 as they lead 35-33 after one.

Qtr2- Apparently Harris is in fact capable of slumping, as the last six or so periods of play have not been pretty for him. It is amazing how frequently Morris' passes lead to made threes. I'm very impressed with the all around ability of Brogdon. He's a valuable glue guy +, which is necessary on any championship quality team. This game has the early look of an extremely high scoring affair, despite adequate defense played by both teams. Lyles is getting it going offensively but is struggling mightily on the other end. This game is so much more free-flowing and fun to watch than at any other point this season. The Nuggets trail by two as they head into a break at 6:25, following a Tony Snell three on a non-threatening close-out by Beasley. Millsap's shot is true once again from beyond the arc and he's officially en fuego!

Juancho has looked excellent tonight in his first start of the year. In the surprise of all surprises, Jokic/Juancho are doing a very nice job in hedging-recovering defensively, guarding the P&R. The Bucks lead a well played game for both teams by two, with under two minutes remaining. The unguardable, professional three point shooter Paul Millsap draws a foul while attempting a three and he makes 2-3 from the charity stripe. That's three fouls for Ersan. 'Sap sticks his 5th three! Milwaukee is showing no signs of road weariness or fatigue of any sort, as they lead going into the half on a three by Brogdon. Millsap has an outstanding 23 points at the break. Denver is paced in TPM by Jokic +12, Morris +14 & Millsap +20 as they trail 59-63 at the half.

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Qtr3- I must once again salute Josh Kroenke for greasing the wheels of the league office, as a means to get staggered start times for the Nuggets and Avs games tonight. Jokic sticks a three from Millsap, Denver's 10th make from downtown on the night. The refs appear to be swallowing their whistles and allowing the guys to play which I'm in favor of, so long as it's evenly distributed. Another good close-out by Juancho on Freaky Greeky. Denver trails by one at 9:17. Jokic ties it up with a three, once again from 'Sap on a very interesting two-man game beyond the arc. Jokic has played absolutely stellar D tonight but has been scored upon in spite of this on numerous occasions. He just slapped a roof on Giannis down low. Such a fun game. Both teams respective fan-bases should be exceedingly excited about the future of their chosen team. Big Honey joins The Anchorman in the 20 point club. Milwaukee still leads by two at 6:41. Murray can not stay in front of Brogdon tonight; the one glaring weakness for the Nuggets D this evening. G's free-throw stroke is shall we say... impure.

The Bucks are heating up as they lead by seven with 5:49 to go and Denver looks like the team playing the second of a B2B on the road, at altitude. Milwaukee is 14-24 from distance! Denver is a far-more-than respectable 13-26 them-damned-selves. Lopez is starting to lose Jokic in transition, opening himself to wide open looks from the arc. It is incredible the distance from which he is shooting at this point. He's 7-10 from the arc all by himself! VERY impressive. Their lead is 10 on the strength of a 20-6 run that occurred seemingly in the blink of an eye. Harris makes a three and becomes the third Nugget to reach double digits. Milwaukee can not miss from the arc! It is frankly, amazing that Denver is only down by seven with just under two to play. Ersan nabs his 4th foul sending Plumlee to the line where he surprisingly makes one of them. Three point shooting thus-far: Milwaukee = 16-28, Denver = 15-31. No players for either squad are in any sort of serious, individual foul trouble. Denver is paced in TPM by Harris +11, Jokic +13, Morris +17 & Millsap +29 as they trail 88-99 after three.

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Qtr4- The Nuggets make three straight from distance in cutting the lead to four. What's the intergalactic record for combined threes made and attempted by two teams in a game? Denver has all the momentum and the Can-Crowd is getting riled up as they pull to within two points on a Lyles drive at 10:12. We may finally be seeing signs of mental, if not physical fatigue out of the Bucks. The Nuggets tie it up by creating offense from defense, leading to a Lyles dunk. This unit consisting of Morris/Murray/Harris/Lyles/Plumlee are having one hell of a fourth quarter! Denver now leads at 7:45 on consecutive jumpers by The Blue Arrow. What a basketball game! I can now confirm that the Bucks are clearly starting to operate from an energy deficit as they are getting careless in their passing, while starting to miss badly on their J's. Denver is up by two with 4:34 to play. Beasley/Murray make six Nuggets in double figures. Monte has a season high ten assists. He, rather than Beasley checks out and I'm not a fan of the move. The Bucks re-insert the bulk of their starters for seemingly one final push and they quickly retake the one point lead with 4:08 to go, on the strength of a 5-0 mini-run.

Ersan fouls out, Lopez checks in and the Bucks starting five is in tact, as a result. The Nuggets should consider utilizing the frack-a Freak strategy with 2:05 remaining in a tie game. Brogdon sticks a three and that's the margin with 1:40 remaining. Denver turns it over as the offense is suddenly stagnant; zero movement without the ball. Time to tighten the screws defensively for the Nuggets. They'll do no such thing as a Middleton J makes it a five point spread with just 41 seconds to play. An emphatic dunk by 'Sap is followed by a questionable foul by Harris on Middleton who obviously hits both. Beasley throws the inbound away and the air has been sucked out of the Pepsi center building. This loss is equal parts Malone/starting unit's careless play at the end of the fourth. Highly frustrating home loss. The straw that broke the camel's back was Morris being replaced by Beasley to close out the game. Denver is paced in TPM by Jokic +10, Harris +12, Morris +26 & Millsap +31 as they blow another one by a touchdown in a ridiculously high scoring American football match, 114-121.

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Final Thoughts: The single greatest curse-phrase in the English language is "Jesus tap-dancing Christ!" Hits on all of those vital consonants. Craig's contribution henceforth should consist solely of one possession defense/offense situations. Juancho and Beasley should get the lions share of reserve wing minutes and the time has come to experiment with a three guard offense led by Morris, with Gary defending the wing. Tonight's game was an example of what Denver's offense can do with proper spacing as well as how deadly they can be when the starters get the ball rolling and the bench comes on late, to run teams out of the gym. Too bad the starters weren't prepared to play when they were reinserted in the fourth. Credit where due, Milwaukee, though clearly gassed, never gave up and they looked like a legit contender vs this suddenly struggling Denver group. I guess it's Gary Harris' turn to not look right. I'm rather proud of my pre-game prediction on the score, considering that many numbers exist. More than I can count.

I'm not allowed to link this at the Bucks blog as they use extreme poetic license in interpreting the SBnation terms of service as a means to quell creative writing that is in no way any sort of competition to them. Pretty petty. Just say "I deleted it because you're a far more interesting writer than I." Don't site your misinterpretation of rules about advertising as the reason.

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We Suck Again!

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