At some point, something needs to change if the Milwaukee Bucks want any chance of turning this dreadful start around. In their last game against the Toronto Raptors, who were missing two of their star players, Kawhi Leonard and Scottie Barnes, Milwaukee lost 121-107, despite leading 67% of the game, including a 14-point lead in the first half. 

It was a golden opportunity to get in the win column, which has only happened once this season, but an underwhelming second half left head coach Taylor Jenkins extremely frustrated after the loss as his team fell to 1-8 on the year. At this point in the season, it’s fair to assume what type of direction the year will be for the Bucks, but as with any team, they’re going to try to do everything they can to win games regardless of how the season has started.

As Jenkins looks for potential solutions, one could come through his rotations. The team has a lot of new additions, and it’s been up to Jenkins and his staff to figure out which lineups and rotations give him the best chance to win. It didn’t take long for him to change the starting lineup as he replaced Ryan Rollins with Brayden Burries, and it has looked to be beneficial for both players. 

The most fired up I’ve ever seen #Bucks head coach Taylor Jenkins after Milwaukee led Toronto for most of the first half but was outscored by 23 points in the second half. The Bucks are now 1-8 on the season. pic.twitter.com/vPMMjBPiAj

— Cameron Ezeir (@camezeir) November 7, 2026

Milwaukee is currently on a five-game losing streak, and it may be time to lean into certain lineups that could possibly give itself a better chance to win. Granted it's only been nine games, so the sample size isn't the largest, but looking at the statistics, they could be a possible solution.

Here are three possible lineups the Bucks could use going forward:

R. ROLLINS -B. BURRIES - A. GREEN - K. KUZMA - K. WARE

The lineup of Rollins, Burries, AJ Green, Kyle Kuzma and Kel'el Ware has had the most sample size among the three playing in four of the eight games this season and has looked the most productive offensively.

The group has averaged 11.3 points per game, with a 132.4 offensive rating and a net rating of 8.1 while shooting 48.4% from the field and 50% from the 3-point line on five attempts per game. What makes this lineup intriguing is that the two leading scorers for the Bucks, Tyler Herro and Jaime Jaquez Jr., aren't in the lineup.

We've seen Milwaukee look lost offensively without the two on the court, but with this lineup, it would allow them to rest while keeping a fair amount of production and not turning the ball over. The main concerns would be the defense, as they have a defensive rating of 124.2 and rebounding only averaging four per game.

There could also be questions on if they could create consistent scoring opportunities with the two leading scorers, but with the way Burries has been recently playing, along with Rollins who is capable of creating his own shot, I don't think it's that much of a concern. They only average 3.8 minutes per game, but they made more time on the floor together.

K. JAKUČIONIS T. HERRO - A. GREEN - N. AMENT - M. TURNER

The lineup of Kasparas Jakučionis, Herro, Green, Nate Ament and Myles Turner has played the least amount of minutes among the three lineups, but looked the most balanced. On 1.5 minutes per game in three games, this lineup has an 118.2 offensive rating, 90.9 defensive rating and a 27.3 net rating.

On offensive they're pretty efficient shooting 57.1% from the field and 33.3% from the 3-point line, but only averages 4.3 points per game. This group doesn't get a lot of minutes together and that might be due to the fact that Jakučionis and Herro have had some of the worst plus-minus numbers among the Bucks' guard combinations with a -87 in 114 minutes.

Bucks guard combos so far, sorted by +/-

(Obviously small sample and noisy, so take with grain of salt) pic.twitter.com/xjEsGF87qb

— Nathan Marzion (@nathanmarzion) November 5, 2026

You get the shot creation of Herro who they would have to lean on, and have three players who shoot above 37% from the 3-point line while having a solid defensive rating among the group, with the length of Ament and Turner. They don't average a lot of minutes together, but to be a consistent group in their three games together, they may need more.

B. BURRIES - T. HERRO - A. GREEN -K. KUZMA - M. TURNER

There's only one change in the this lineup from the starting lineup Milwaukee used in the last three games and that's Green replacing Jaquez. This group has only seen two games together on 3.3 minutes per game, but are also another balanced lineup.

They have a 107.1 offensive rating, 92.9 defensive rating and a 14.3 net rating while averaging 7.5 points per game on 57.1% shooting from the field and 25% from the 3-point line. The 3-point shooting isn't the best, even with the likes of two players shooting above 40% in Green and Herro, but they have options on offense with Burries and Herro, with Green spacing the floor. Rebounding would also be a problem, as they only averaged 3.5 per game.

Final note

In the three potential linueps, there was one player who was in all of them and that's Green. Everyone knows he's a sharpshooter and isn't shy about shooting anywhere on the floor, but the one improvemnt of his game that allows him to be effective in these lineups is his defense.

AJ Green’s defensive improvement from last year is staggering. That’s what gets you 4th quarter minutes #Bucks

— Cameron Ezeir (@camezeir) November 5, 2026

Rather than just being a shooter and being picked on defensively, he can hold his own while still providing production as a shooter. Green is limited offensively, especially when his shot is not falling, but to start the month of November, he's averaged 10 points while shooting 45% from the 3-point line on 6.7 3-point attempts per game.

He had a rough strecth near the end of October, but has picked things up in Novmeber and could be someone who is deserving of more minutes in the future.