With Anthony Mason, the Milwaukee Bucks have spent $21 million on the supreme high-risk, high-return investment

Evidence of whether this venture eventually goes bust or pays off in an Eastern Conference championship or better will begin to make itself known Tuesday, when the Bucks, opening against the Utah Jazz, begin one of their most anticipated seasons in franchise history.

Before their pursuit of Mason, the Bucks were already a very good team. They finished one game from the NBA Finals last season on the strength of perhaps the league's finest perimeter offense. Yet they were soft in their artistry. What they didn't have was consistent rebounding, aggressive defense, an inside offensive presence and the kind of fierce edge characteristic of champions.

Those are precisely the skills Mason, 34, has developed during a 13-year career that culminated in his first all-star season last year in Miami, where he averaged almost 16 points and 10 rebounds per game. At least on paper, Mason is the ideal fit for the Bucks, the missing piece to make their title chase whole.