Milwaukee coach Chris Ford wasn't hard to locate after his team's 116-109 loss to Utah Thursday. He was the guy slumped in a chair near the back of the locker room. The Bucks, who were once 11-8, had just dropped to 15-19.
And on a night when last year's biggest off-season trade took center stage with Seattle and Vin Baker defeating Shawn Kemp and Cleveland, Ford had no complaints about Milwaukee's gain in the three-team deal.
"I think Terrell (Brandon) and Tyrone (Hill) are doing their jobs," Ford said. "They've been welcome additions."
Brandon is averaging 16.7 points and 7.4 assists; and Hill is pulling down rebounds at a 10.7 per game clip.
The only problem has been getting these guys on the floor together.
Brandon has missed seven games with an ankle sprain (the Bucks went 2-5 without him), while Hill has been absent five times attending to his seriously ill father in Ohio.
"It's been tough on all of us," said Brandon.
Unfortunately for the Bucks, who hope to contend for a playoff berth after a six-year post-season drought, things got even tougher in the Delta Center.
With 5:38 remaining in the second quarter, Hill was carried off the floor by teammates after spraining his right knee. A preliminary examination failed to detect any serious damage, though the injury will be looked at again today in Milwaukee. The NBA's seventh-leading rebounder did not return to the game.
Initially, his absence inspired the Bucks, who were completing a three-games-in-four-nights tour of Portland, the L.A. Lakers and Utah.
Milwaukee trailed 39-34 at the time of the injury before a 22-11 run gave the visitors a 56-50 advantage. A 3-pointer by Utah's Bryon Russell, however, cut the lead in half as the period came to a close.
Second-year guard Ray Allen, who scored 18 of his 20 first-half points in the second quarter, said the Bucks eventually just ran out of gas.
"It was a turning point in the third period when we just couldn't score," he said. "We didn't lock down on defense and (Utah) got some easy layups and transition. After that, it was all downhill."
The lead changed hands seven times in the third before Utah took the lead for good at 81-80 entering the final period. A 30-15 burst made it 111-95 with less than three minutes left to play as the Jazz pulled comfortably away.
"We have to pay attention to the small details if we want to be a good team," said Brandon, a two-time all-star. "And we just haven't done that."
Defense and execution were two areas the point guard targeted for improvement. Ford agreed.
"I'm surprised that we were able to hang in the game for such a large amount of time," he said, while noting the Bucks had just two turnovers and grabbed 10 offensive rebounds in the first half.