Carter-Williams ready for Rose, playoffs

The Milwaukee Bucks are finishing up their workout. Over on a side hoop, Michael Carter-Williams is shooting jumpers with Giannis Antetokounmpo, taking turns from various spots. From the right corner, Williams misses and then refuses to yield to Antetokounmpo, who playfully pushes his new teammate out of the way. The young players fake tussle for a couple of seconds, then get back to work. Playful like kids. Serious like professionals.

If the Bucks are stressing about the playoffs, you can't see it on the practice floor. The only thing unusual about the scene is the calendar. It's April 17, the day before the 2015 NBA playoffs begin. Milwaukee is supposed to be holding exit interviews, not preparing for Game 1 against the Chicago Bulls in a nationally televised ESPN game.

"I'll be hyped," said Antetokounmpo, who is always hyped. "Every game matters right now. Every possession."

Coming off a franchise-worst 67 losses, no reasonable person could have projected Milwaukee to make a 26-game leap into the playoffs. But under the guidance of second-year coach Jason Kidd, that's what happened and Kidd keeps alive what is now a 19-year run of postseason basketball.

"It's about the players," Kidd said. "The players do the lifting. It's my job to put them in the right position. That's all I'm concerned about."

It's particularly incongruent to see Williams in prep mode, being that two months ago, he could have quite reasonably booked a trip to Vegas for this weekend. Before he ended up in the megadeal that landed him in Milwaukee, Carter-Williams was toiling for a Sixers team that was 12-43 at the time.

"I'm a competitor," Carter-Williams said. "I wanted to compete in the playoffs during my career. Me getting traded here has allowed me to do that, and I'm really appreciative."

But the feel-good path to that reality wasn't smooth, as a post-trade deadline slump nearly pushed the Bucks out of the picture altogether, even in the weak East. After going a season-high eight games over .500 just after the break, Milwaukee dropped 12 of 15. Carter-Williams averaged 12.8 points and shot just 38 percent in his first 17 games for Milwaukee, though the Bucks did slightly outscore opponents with him on the floor.

But the East is the East, and a 7-5 finish was enough to secure the No. 6 seed and the showdown with Central Division neighbor Chicago. What's more encouraging is that Carter-Williams seemed to reach a nice level of comfort with Kidd's schemes and his new teammates. In eight April games, he upped his scoring to 16.9 points on 51 percent shooting and cut his turnovers. Even better, Milwaukee outscored opponents by 11.6 points per game during that stretch with MCW on the floor.

"The way he's playing shows he's comfortable," said Bucks center Zaza Pachulia. "It's not just one game or two games. It's every single game he's playing at a high level."

Milwaukee's strong start this season was built on bench play and a smothering, aggressive defense. Both elements faltered during the Bucks' late winter swoon, and the reserves, as a group, are still searching for their former consistency. However, the Bucks have regained their defensive mojo in April by posting the league's best defensive efficiency. Carter-Williams, whose length and quickness give him the tools of a good defender, has been spotty on that end as a pro. However, during this month of defensive resurgence for Milwaukee, the Bucks have been even more efficient on that end with MCW on the floor.

"The [defensive] concepts are really hard to get used to," Carter-Wiliams said. "I was so used to playing a different style of defense. I enjoy it. It's hard, but if you work at it you can be really effective."

Carter-Williams will be tasked in the Chicago series with a primary assignment against former MVP Derrick Rose. The two have met just once before in the NBA. In his third professional game, Carter-Williams had 26 points and 10 assists to Rose's 13 and 6, and Philadelphia knocked off the Bulls in Chicago. Then, like now, Rose was coming back from injury. But Carter-Williams knows that he's in for a tough matchup nonetheless.

"He's tough. He's fast. He's strong." Carter-Williams said. "I just have to keep him in front and get a hand up on his jump shot."

Carter-Williams and Antetokounmpo ended up being the last ones off the floor before being corralled by the small media contingent typical of a Bucks practice. It was hard to say who won the shooting contest, and obviously that will be an area of focus for both players going forward. What wasn't hard to tell is that despite being teammates for less than two months, the young players already have developed a nice rapport. They'll need it, because they are just two of seven Bucks who have never played in the postseason.

"I'm feeling more comfortable. MCW is feeling more comfortable," Antetokounmpo said. "And it's nice that we're feeling more comfortable now. Now is the most important thing."