Zeller providing impact on offensive boards for Bucks

By Dave Heller
Published

Welcome to the 2017-18 edition of the Young Bucks Tracker. This year, we're taking a different tact. With Milwaukee now having a G League franchise, the Wisconsin Herd, each Thursday we'll either track the progress of the players who might be of help to the Bucks in the future or a current member of the Milwaukee roster. We'll also give updates on the other young players from the previous week.

This is the 15th edition of the 2017-18 Young Bucks Tracker.



SPOTLIGHT ON …

Center Tyler Zeller

Since coming to Milwaukee, Zeller has received sporadic playing time -- averaging 15.8 minutes per game -- but has added some energy to the team when he's on the floor and has made a definite impact in at least one area: offensive rebounding.

Zeller has at least one offensive board in all but one of his games with the Bucks and this past week grabbed six (of his 16 total) in three games.

His offensive rebounding percentage for the week is at 16.7 percent. In his 13 appearances with Milwaukee, it's 15.1 percent. No regular on the Bucks has a season ORB% reaching double digits.

Zeller's offensive rebounding prowess compares well with the best in the NBA. This season, only three players have an ORB% of higher than 15 percent: Detroit's Andre Drummond (16.8), Oklahoma City's Steven Adams (16.7) and New York's Enes Kanter (16.3).

It wasn't just offensive rebounds for Zeller this week; in his 16.0 minutes he managed to have a total rebounding percentage of 20.2 percent. That would percentage would rank him eighth in the NBA, ahead of such players as Minnesota's Karl-Anthony Towns, New Orleans' DeMarcus Cousins and Philadelphia's Joel Embiid.

This past week Zeller also scored 20 points in 48 minutes while shooting 8-of-15 from the field and blocked three shots for good measure.

With the Bucks, Zeller is also averaging 5.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.7 blocks with a 58.9 field-goal percentage, 60.5 true shooting percentage and 123 Offensive Rating.

BUCKSHOTS

-- Jabari Parker minutes watch: 23:26, 21:23, 22:21.

-- Khris Middleton made at least half of his shots in all three of Milwaukee's games last week and had a 60.9 clip in that span. He made 8 of 13 3-point attempts and nailed all 12 of his free-throw attempts while averaging 25.3 points per game.

-- We highlighted last week how Giannis Antetokounmpo is back to scoring a lot of points. It hasn't stopped. This past week he had games of 28 and 38 points.

-- Sterling Brown made 8 of 13 shots (61.5 percent) this past week and also hit both of his free-throw attempts.

-- Brandon Jennings had quite the debut in his second go-around with the Bucks.

-- The Wisconsin Herd played two games last week and Marshall Plumlee, on a two-way contract with Milwaukee, appeared in both. He had 12 points and two rebounds in 23 minutes in the first game and 15 and eight in the second. Xavier Munford, also on a two-way, started the second game and had 18 points, five rebounds and six assists.