Milwaukee Bucks have their sights set on a playoff spot this season, and the team is hoping the championship pedigree of players such as Jason Terry and Australian Matthew Dellavedova will help motivate their young core.
The Bucks are currently tied for ninth in the East alongside Miami Heat, and sit just 1.5 games back of Detroit for the final playoff seed despite having played large chunks of the season without key men Khris Middleton, Michael Beasley and most recently, Jabari Parker.
While it's been anything but smooth sailing on the injury front, Dellavedova is confident the Bucks will sneak into the playoff picture.
"That's definitely the goal, to get up in the playoffs, and get a good seed," he told ESPN. "Miami's been on a good run; Detroit's a game-and-a-half ahead; then there's Chicago and Indiana [too]. We're really trying to finish the season strong."
Dellavedova may be in just his fourth season in the league, but he possesses a wealth of experience from playoff runs during his time with Cleveland Cavaliers.
Dellavedova said both he and Jason Terry have tried to convey to the younger players the importance of closing out the regular season strongly.
"We try to pass on as much as we can," Dellavedova told ESPN. "After All-Star break everyone's either fighting for a playoff spot or fighting for a good seed, it steps up in physicality and intensity. The older guys have tried to tell everybody that, and we've been focused and locked in."
Bucks coach Jason Kidd said the experience of both Dellavedova and Terry was invaluable for his team.
"When you have vets that have been in that situation, understanding the importance of each game, taking it one game at a time and not looking [too far] forward; those guys have been in these situations and have had success," Kidd said.
After a horror month in February in which Dellavedova's numbers dropped considerably -- 4.9 points per game on 32 percent shooting from the field, and just 25 percent from long-range - the Australian has been a force to be reckoned with in March.
Over four games, Dellavedova is averaging 11.1 points on 51 percent shooting while connecting on 44 percent of his triples. He's managed this while getting used to coming off the bench, too.
On March. 1, Jason Kidd decided to start Malcolm Brogdon, and has stuck with the rookie point guard since. Dellavedova said coming off the bench doesn't change his aggressive approach to the game.
"In general I play a little bit better when I'm aggressive, it just opens up the passing lanes," he said.
Coincidentally, following a midseason slump in which the team went 5-10 during the month of January, the Bucks have also finally appeared to have found some of the form they showed during the early stages of the season. They've won three-in-a-row, and are 7-3 in their last 10 outings, with a three-game home stand to come against the Knicks, Pacers and Timberwolves.
"We need to finish this week strong and go out and get on the road," Dellavedova told ESPN.
As for a potential showdown against his old team should the Bucks go on and manage to get a hold of that final playoff seed, Dellavedova said: "We've still got 20 games to go, so there's a long way to go before we think about that."
