Glenn Robinson and Ray Allen reportedly kissed and made up Wednesday night, but then on Thursday Big Dog took a bite out of Ray and the Bucks.
Robinson scored 23 points to help the Atlanta Hawks to a 98-80 win over the Bucks at Atlanta Thursday night.
One night before that game, after receiving a call from former teammate and still good friend Sam Cassell, Robinson met with Allen while shopping for shoes. They reportedly talked about an exchange of critical statements in the media before the season started and made up.
"It's over as of last night," Robinson said on TV, referring to any bad feelings between the former teammates. "I'm here trying to make good things happen for the Hawks. He's over there trying to get Milwaukee back to the playoffs. We're really in similar situations."
Robinson, who also went out of his way to cordially talk with Bucks' coach George Karl, had a somewhat typical night. He made only 10 of 24 shots from the floor, but kept putting the ball up in that "scorer's mentality."
The Big Dog also showed he still turns the ball over, and doesn't play very good defense, but 23 points would have looked good to the Bucks. It has become quite clear that the Bucks' problems go much deeper than just Robinson's shortcomings.
Allen scored 16 points in his return after an injury, but the Bucks lacked any consistent play on either end of the floor. They remain a collection of players rather than a team.
Milwaukee still is primarily a jump shooting team, even though Robinson is gone. When they don't hit their jumpers, the Bucks are very mediocre.
When Toni Kukoc was healthy, you could call the trade that sent Robinson to Atlanta almost a draw. Now that Kukoc is out for several weeks with a thumb injury, the deal definitely looks better for the Hawks, despite the fact Big Dog remains primarily a one-dimensional player.
Other former Bucks
Robinson is not the only former Buck in Atlanta. Darvin Ham comes off the bench for the Bucks, and former assistant coach Terry Stotts is an assistant on the Hawks' bench.
Ham and Stotts were close to Karl, but along with Big Dog did their best to take a bite out of their former team Thursday.
Admirals add two players
The Nashville Predators reassigned center Wyatt Smith and goaltender Brian Finley to the Admirals. Both players are expected to join the team Friday night at the Bradley Center.
Smith has scored one goal in nine games with Predators and scored four points (2g-2a) in six games with Milwaukee earlier this season. Finley has played in six games with Toledo of the East Coast Hockey League and is 4-2-0 with a 2.33 goals-against-average and .921 save percentage.
Wave sets European camp
The Milwaukee Wave announced this week an agreement between the team and Queens Park Rangers of the English Football Association to co-sponsor a week-long European Academy at the QPR training grounds in West London from July 18-27, 2003. The Academy highlights the Wave's 2003 summer soccer camp schedule, which includes 55 sessions at 32 different locations.
"This is the first of what we hope will be many different opportunities to expand the game of soccer in Wisconsin and provide extended training for youth players in our area," said Wave President / CEO Tim Krause. "The Queens Park Rangers have had a storied tradition in English professional soccer since 1882 and we are excited about the opportunity to work with such a well-known soccer club."
The Wave's traveling entourage to England will include coach Keith Tozer, goalkeeper Victor Nogueira, and forward Michael King. King, a London native who developed his skills as a youth player in England, is also the Wave's Director of European Operations.
The first group of youth players to participate in the Wave European Academy will be made up of U-14 and U-16 boys. Interested players and families should contact the Wave Office at 414-224-WAVE (9283) for further details.
Goodbye Joe
I want to take just a few lines to say goodbye to a great sports fan, and dear friend, from my days with the Kenosha News. Former State Senator Joe Andrea died this week at age 75.
Joe was well known, and well loved, around the state and served in the Senate for a long time, but he primarily was a lover of sports, especially his most beloved Cubs. We will always forgive him for that error in judgment.
{INSERT_RELATED}Kent in Capetown
As of Monday, Tim Kent of Elm Grove was in Capetown, South Africa, where he will rest up before departing on the next leg of his Around Alone sailing competition. Kent finished the second leg of the around the world race in second place in his class.
Check out a cover story on the local sailor and his Everest Horizontal boat in Sailing Breezes Internet Magazine.
Hot Tix
The Bradley Center will be a busy place with pro sports this weekend. The Admirals return from their seven-game road trip Friday night to take on the Chicago Wolves at 7:12 at the Bradley Center. Fans are asked to bring non-perishable food items to donate to "Food For Families," which benefits Second Harvest Food Bank.
The Wave plays in San Diego Friday night, but returns to the BC for a 1:05 p.m. game on Sunday against the Dallas Sidekicks.
On Saturday night, the Bucks host the New Orleans Hornets at 7:30 p.m.
In Green Bay, the Packers will try to get revenge for an earlier loss when they host the Minnesota Vikings in a Sunday night game at Lambeau Field. Read about that one in On The Pack on Monday on OMC.
Gregg Hoffmann writes The Milwaukee Sports Buzz on Fridays and On The Pack on days after Packers' games for OMC.
