Larry Brown Sports

Brandon Jennings has not been pleased with Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jim Boylan lately, and his frustration briefly boiled over to Twitter on Saturday. During a 109-99 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Jennings was critical of Boylan’s decision to call a timeout with 10 seconds left and his team trailing by 10. He tweeted the following before quickly deleting it, but per usual someone was able to capture it first:

It’s never a good idea to fire off a tweet before getting a hold of your emotions, but some athletes do it anyway. Jennings has a history of butting heads with his coaches. He never seemed to get along with former coach Scott Skiles, but at one point the fourth-year guard said he felt like he felt like he gotten his swagger back with Boylan calling the shots.

Perhaps that feeling no longer exists. Last week, Boylan benched Jennings after he gave up an easy layup to Philadelphia 76ers point guard Jrue Holiday in the third quarter. Jennings sat out the rest of the game, and afterword he was quick to point out that he felt Boylan was making an example out of him in an unfair manner.

The Bucks are currently fighting for the eighth playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but Jennings’ stats are down from last year and he has indicated on several occasions that he could make life difficult for Milwaukee when he becomes a restricted free agent this offseason. Based on his history, it’s probably a pretty safe bet that it will happen.

H/T Game On!

Brandon Jennings was benched late in the Milwaukee Bucks’ 100-92 loss at Philadelphia Wednesday, and he is not happy about it.

Jennings was benched after giving up a layup to 76ers point guard Jrue Holiday in the third quarter and did not play the rest of the game. Jennings ended up scoreless for the first time in his NBA career. His coach, Jim Boylan, said he removed Jennings because he wanted more intensity and energy.

Jennings noted this was the third time he’s been benched in the second half of a game. He said he always wants to be out there to help his team. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Jennings also said he feels he is being singled out.

“I don’t see any all-stars in this locker room so I think everybody should be held accountable, like anybody else,” Jennings said per Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel. “There’s no maxed-out players in this locker room; there’s no all-stars. So don’t try to put me on a pedestal and just give everybody else the freedom to do whatever they want.”

The Bucks actually led during the fourth quarter, but the 76ers went on a 15-0 run to reclaim the lead.

Boylan defended his decision to bench Jennings.

“So you have to bring it every single night, at both ends of the floor. If that’s not happening, you need to do something. I just felt I needed to do something tonight, so that’s what I did,” he said, via the Journal Sentinel.

Wednesday marked the third time this month that Jennings had a poor game. He had four points in 27 minutes during a March 12 loss to the Mavericks, and four points on 1-for-15 shooting in a loss to the Pacers last week. Jennings may feel like he is being singled out, but if he wants to be considered a franchise type player, he can’t have games like this.

H/T Rotoworld

The Miami Heat are the defending NBA champions. They have the best player in the league, the best winning percentage, and they are on a 17-game winning streak. But Brandon Jennings still would rather face them in the playoffs than the New York Knicks.

Jennings made his comments Friday after the Milwaukee Bucks’ practice, noting that the team seems to match up better against Miami than New York. The Bucks are in the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference and two games out of the seventh spot. The Heat are likely to clinch the top spot, while the Knicks and Indiana Pacers are battling for the second.

“The two games that we played Miami so far, we matched up well against them,” Jennings said, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “If you ask me, that’s who I would want to play first round, Miami.

“Just the fact over the years, a lot of the games have gone down to the wire with us and Miami. Right now we haven’t really played well against the Knicks. I just feel better if we play Miami first round, just the fact we have good games against them. I don’t know if it’s because they’re the champs or what, but we always play harder against Miami.”

The Bucks have gone 1-1 against the Heat this season and beat them 2-1 last season. They have gone 0-2 against the Knicks this season, which could explain his thinking.

Regardless of what the numbers say, anyone could tell you that the Bucks have a better shot at beating the Knicks in the playoffs than the Heat. Does Jennings not think that the Heat would change their game in the postseason and play with more intensity? I know Jennings has a lot of confidence, but he should be taking the Evan Turner approach.

The Milwaukee Bucks have won both of their games under Jim Boylan since the interim head coach took over for Scott Skiles at the beginning of the week. Brandon Jennings scored 29 points in the Bucks’ win over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday and 35 in a win over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday. Jennings looks like he has received a burst of energy from the coaching change, and the fourth-year guard said it has to do with his swagger.

“At first, it was tough for me, just the fact that Skiles was my coach my first four years in the league,” Jennings said according to CSNChicago.com. “Of course, Boylan’s been here for the four years, too. But I know the first night, when we first had him, it was a little different looking on the sideline and (Skiles) wasn’t there. But Coach Boylan, he’s been here for four years, we’ve worked together in the summertime, so he knows my game and I know what to expect from him.

“I felt like I can do what I want. I’ve got my swagger now. I can clown around, dance, do what I want. I might end up changing my hair back again. I think just overall, the confidence that the team has. Everybody’s playing with confidence. Guys are just playing free. We’re not really thinking right now; we’re just hooping.”

Of course, that’s all easy to say after just two games. The Bucks finished the 2011-2012 season with a record of 31-35, and they are 18-16 so far this season. That means at the moment they are still around a .500 team. That being said, teams generally perform better when their superstars are content. At roughly this time last season, Jennings expressed his frustration with the direction of the organization. The fact that he says he is enjoying himself — even if that means bringing back his bizarre hairdo — is certainly a positive for the organization.

Chest bump to Ball Don’t Lie

Brandon Jennings is an LA kid, and in case you didn’t know that, he has a unique tattoo to remind you. Yup, Jennings has a tattoo of the Roscoe’s Chicken’ ‘n Waffles logo on his left arm.

We believe Jennings has had the tattoo since at least 2010, but it wasn’t really publicized much until Jocks and Stiletto Jill noticed it when Jennings shared a picture of another tattoo he recently got.

Sole Collector informs us that the tattoo is part of an entire tribute to LA that Jennings has on his left forearm. Jennings also has worn a special-edition Roscoe’s Under Armour sneaker as a tribute to his favorite restaurant.

In case you’re unfamiliar with Roscoe’s, it’s an extremely popular restaurant with five locations throughout the LA-area. It’s open late and usually packed with lines around the doors — especially at its Hollywood location.

This dude must really love his chicken and waffles. Now he has me considering a “Brent’s Deli” tattoo across my chest — in Old English font, of course.

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, hold up a second. You mean to tell me a good player in the Milwaukee market is thinking about leaving his team? Now there’s a shocker.

Brandon Jennings is in his third NBA season after being drafted by the Bucks in 2009. He can become a free agent in 2014 and says he’s already planning on exploring his options.

“I am going to keep my options open, knowing that the time is coming up,” Jennings told Chris Broussard over email. “I’m doing my homework on big-market teams.”

Jennings says the city of Milwaukee and the front office has been nothing but good to him, but after seeing guys like Melo, Chris Paul, and Dwight Howard pretty much force their way out of small market teams, he says it opened his eyes to the business side of the game.

The real big story to worry about if you’re a Bucks fan is this line from Broussard:

“Sources close to the situation said he is frustrated with the direction of the franchise.”

If Broussard just interviewed Jennings and he’s including that line, you can take it to the bank that it’s accurate. Bucks GM John Hammond said the interview caught him off guard. It really shouldn’t. Small market teams can’t realistically expect star players to remain in their city instead of going to a more glamorous town. It’s a harsh reality, but it’s the truth.

Brandon Jennings has already made a name for himself in the NBA with his game, but he seems determined to make one with his mouth as well.  As we all know, Kobe Bryant has been doing what Kobe Bryant does while playing in the Drew League this summer.  The Drew League is based in Los Angeles.  Why do I tell you that?  Because apparently that matters significantly to Jennings.

According to ESPN’s Chris Palmer on Twitter via I Am a GM, Jennings does not think Kobe should represent the Drew League Team in competition with other leagues like D.C.’s Goodman Team since he was not born in L.A.

“People mad because I said Kobe shouldn’t play for the Drew League team cuz he wasn’t born in #LA,” Jennings wrote on Twitter. “So that’s a lie? I never said Kobe (shouldn’t) play in the Drew League I can careless. I’m talking about the Drew League TEAM! That hooped against DC.”

In other words Kobe shouldn’t be a part of the actual west coast vs. east coast rivalry because he is not originally from California.  He has, however, played for L.A.’s team for 15 seasons.  During that span he made 13 All-Star appearances, won five NBA titles, and earned two NBA Finals MVP awards.  If you can earn your way into representing the Drew League Team, I think Kobe has built an ample resume.  Jennings wants to take the next step with his NBA game and obviously he thinks going after Kobe in public can help get him there.