The Milwaukee Bucks will be looking to avoid their first 0-4 start to a season in a half-century when they host the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
The last time Milwaukee started a season with four straight defeats was in 1976-77, when the Bucks went on to lose their first five before Larry Costello quit as coach after 18 games (3-15) and was replaced by Don Nelson.
Fifty years later, Milwaukee stands on the precipice of unwanted history after slumping to 0-3 with a 127-116 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday, but the Bucks aren’t panicking just yet.
“We won the transition battle, we won the paint battle, we just didn’t come up in a couple clutch moments,” Milwaukee coach Taylor Jenkins said after losing to the Sixers. “Obviously, our turnovers definitely hurt us, but, man, the competitive spirit was awesome. Obviously, the record is the record, but we’re making progress in how we want to play night-in, night-out.
“I know the result’s going to sting — we’re motivated,” Jenkins added. “We want to get our first win. We want to get multiple wins. But we’re making progress.”
Jaime Jaquez Jr. led the Bucks with 21 points in Philadelphia, while Kel’el Ware added 19 points and 13 rebounds off the bench.
“You’ve just got to stay the course,” Jaquez said, echoing Jenkins’ sentiments. “It’s frustrating to drop your first three, but you’ve still got to balance that with knowing that there’s 79 more games. Hopefully, you just take these (losses) and continue to grow. I think we’ve been growing from the first game even to now, and now it’s just got to translate to wins.”
Indiana can relate to Milwaukee’s current plight.
Coming off a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the NBA Finals in June 2025, the Pacers started last season with five straight defeats and never recovered.
The signs are better this time around. Indiana improved to 2-1 by beating the Brooklyn Nets 136-109 in New York on Sunday, led by Tyrese Haliburton’s 24 points and 10 assists.
Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard and Obi Toppin hit four 3-pointers each to lead a long-range assault from the Pacers, who went 21 of 43 from distance.
But the victory came at a cost, with center Ivica Zubac leaving the arena on crutches after spraining his left ankle in the first quarter.
“He’s got some swelling,” Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said. “It’s pretty unlikely he’ll play (Monday), but we’ll see. Hopefully, it will be a day-to-day thing … maybe he’ll feel a lot better in the morning. It’s hard to say. You never know, but it’s probably unlikely. I talked to him after the game and he said, ‘I’ll be all right.’ ”
With guards Ben Sheppard (left meniscus tear) and T.J. McConnell (right hamstring strain) both sidelined and Johnny Furphy still recovering from an ACL tear, the Pacers would be down to 10 healthy standard-contract players if Zubac is out.
“With Sheppard being not available right now and T.J. still not back yet, we need everybody,” Carlisle said. “Our game isn’t going to look exactly the way it’s looked in recent months and years. But the important thing is to find a way to hang in and compete and give ourselves a chance.”
The Bucks have won seven of their past eight meetings against the Pacers, including all four last season.
