Entering the weekend, 9 out of 12 games on ESPN and TNT posted an increase in viewers from last season.

The games include the Suns versus Warriors on Tuesday, which averaged 2.32 million viewers on TNT. That number doubled the equivalent game from last year (Nuggets versus Jazz at 1.2 million) while becoming the most-watched game of the season outside of Opening Night.

Wednesday's Bucks versus Nets game combined for a 1.1 rating with 2.0 million viewers, which represented ESPN's biggest audience in four years for the first half of a weeknight doubleheader. 

A few different Eastern Conference contenders have been linked to trade interest in Jae Crowder of the Phoenix Suns. Now, we can add the Milwaukee Bucks to that list too.

The Bucks and Suns recently engaged in trade talks surrounding the veteran forward. The Atlanta Hawks, Miami Heat and Boston Celtics have all been mentioned as potential landing spots for Crowder too. For now, Crowder remains away from the Suns, as Phoenix works on finding a trade partner.

Milwaukee has a few different trade avenues to land the 3&D combo forward. Most would involve the Bucks parting with at least one rotation player, but Crowder could give them the defense and floor spacing they've lacked at the forward spot since losing P.J. Tucker in free agency before last season.

Giannis Antetokounmpo admits he was never close with Kobe Bryant, but he believes his mindset is similar. 

“I will never say this, I will never disrespect the name of the great Kobe. I don’t like mentioning him,” Antetokounmpo told The Athletic when asked to compare their mentalities. “I feel like he should be mentioned, should never be forgotten. But I don’t like mentioning his name to bring attention to the conversation that we are about to have. I wasn’t close to him. I wasn’t this with him or that with him. But I would say this, in some areas of his mindset, I think we’re very similar.”

In 2018 at the All-Star Game, Antetokounmpo sought out a conversation with Bryant and subsequently worked out with him that next offseason.

“I might not be as talented as him, but when we’re talking about a guy that worked extremely hard from his first day until he retired. A guy that plays to win, a guy that pushes himself to the limit, a guy that has a killer mentality when he steps on the court,” Antetokounmpo said, as he started to recount that workout. “It’s almost like having — I think he had two personalities.

“Like when we were on the sideline and we were talking and I was taking notes, laughing smiling, joking around, talking. But when we stepped on the court, It was like motherf—er didn’t even know me. ‘I thought you were like my friend.’ Again. Again. Again. Again. ‘My bad, Kobe. How many more times are we gonna do it?’ Twenty-five. ‘OK, 25.’ No, 25 makes. Twenty-five makes on the same move?’ And it’s not like you’re just shooting. You’re going hard. I was like, damn, this guy is different.”

Khris Middleton is expected to miss the first few weeks of the regular season as he continues his recovery from offseason wrist surgery.

Middleton also suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain during the Milwaukee Bucks' first round series last season that kept him out of the remainder of their playoff run.

Middleton can become a free agent after the 22-23 season.

The Milwaukee Bucks announced that Pat Connaughton will be out for approximately three weeks with a strained right calf. Milwaukee is already dealing with Khris Middleton being out, while he recovers from offseason wrist surgery.

Connaughton signed a three-year contract extension with Milwaukee this summer. He's a key depth piece for the Bucks and was in consideration to start while Middleton was out.

Last season, Connaughton averaged a career-high 9.9 points per game. He also shot 39.5% on three-pointers. In the playoffs, Connaughton was a key contributor to Milwaukee after Middleton was injured in the first round against the Chicago Bulls.

The Milwaukee Bucks have waived Luca Vildoza. The guard was signed to a non-guaranteed training camp contract.

Despite being on NBA rosters for parts of two seasons, Vildoza has yet to appear in a regular season game. Vildoza did appear in seven game playoff games for the Milwaukee Bucks last season.

The Bucks still have two more waivers to come to get into regular season roster compliance. Marques Bolden and Lindell Wigginton are both on non-guaranteed training camp contracts, making them the most likely cuts to come.

Host Danny Leroux (@DannyLeroux) and Arturo Galletti (@AmericanNumbers) break down the over/unders for the Eastern Conference.

They discuss the win total, division, conference and title odds as well as any pertinent individual award lines for the Pacers (9:22), Magic (18:14), Pistons (25:11), Wizards (33:38), Hornets (39:47), Knicks (46:35), Bulls (52:17), Hawks (56:38), Raptors (1:03:39), Cavs (1:08:12), Heat (1:14:15), Nets (1:19:37), 76ers (1:29:33), Bucks (1:37:20) and Celtics (1:45:37).

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Donte DiVincenzo's time with the Milwaukee Bucks came to an end at last season's deadline when he was traded to the Sacramento Kings.

Previously, DiVincenzo thought he might be traded to the New Orleans Pelicans for Jrue Holiday, and then he was in the sign-and-trade for Bogdan Bogdanovic that was ultimately rescinded. 

Before DiVincenzo was traded to the Kings, he actually thought he would be traded to the Boston Celtics.

“So when the trade deadline came, I didn’t know what to expect,” DiVincenzo said. “I’d heard a ton of rumors. I was in a place where, you know, I loved playing with those guys, but mentally I did wonder if a change of scenery would help. Because I was going into free agency as well. I was still focused on both sides of things. So when I got traded, I was all over the place. Is this great? Is this bad? I thought I was going to Boston.”

DiVincenzo believes he was set to be traded to the Celtics for Dennis Schroder. 

“Dennis Schröder,” he said. “I think I was supposed to go for Dennis Schröder to Boston. I don’t know what happened. Somebody might’ve wanted too much. But that was my impression, that I was going to Boston. The Sacramento one came out of nowhere.”

DiVincenzo signed with the Golden State Warriors this past offseason for $4.5 million with a player option for Year 2.