MILWAUKEE – Expectations will be high for the Milwaukee Bucks this season.

Before the regular season begins, FOX6’s Lily Zhao went one-on-one with Bucks co-owner Jamie Dinan to get a preview of the upcoming year.

FOX6’s Lily Zhao: “I’m here with Mr. Jamie Dinan ahead of a very fun Bucks media day and Jamie, when you’re looking at this team coming into the season, there’s obviously a big veteran group. You also bring in some free agents as well. Along with your rookie class, what gets you the most excited about this upcoming Bucks season?”

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“You know Lily, what I’m really excited about is the team is healthy,” said Jamie Dinan, Bucks co-owner. “I think we heard Doc talk about how in great shape Khris is, for example. Giannis is recovered, Dame is recovered. We’ve got a couple of new people on the team, Gary Trent Jr, played almost the whole season last year in Toronto. Got Taurean Prince, same thing, played almost every game with the Lakers last year. I think we’ve got some really good additions; we’ve got the core back together healthy. We got a really good team.”

FOX6’s Lily Zhao: “It’s been a busy 16 months with the coaching changes and all that, so how important is continuity for this team, to have Doc for a full offseason and have him here for the year?”

“You know, Doc is someone whom I’ve known forever by reputation,” said Dinan. “I only got to meet him for the first time last winter when he joined us. He’s obviously a terrific coach. He’s totally committed to this team and the organization and to winning. I think it’s going to be a big difference. I think this idea that Doc has come up with, which is really a first for this team. Offsite training camp, really team bonding, chemistry dynamics, he gets it. He has a formula and there are not too many coaches with Doc Rivers’ resume out there.”

FOX6’s Lily Zhao: “When you look at how this team has ended the last two postseasons, obviously it’s been tough, as Khris walks by, what gives you confidence that this is the year that you guys can make it back to where you want to be at the end of this thing?”

“In addition to some of these additions that I think we’ve picked up are strong at the two and the three positions,” said Dinan. “If you look at last year, our Big 3, Khris, Dame and Giannis only played like half the season, and yet we won twice as many games when they were on the court. None of these guys were necessarily at 100 percent, so we’ve got a core. I think we’re going to have a healthy core. The chemistry, if it’s there, the talent’s there, and maybe get a little lucky on the health side.”

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FOX6’s Lily Zhao: “We see guys walking down the hallway, obviously saying hi to you, what’s the energy, what’s the vibe you’re getting from the team so far before training camp?”

“I was here last week,” said Dinan. “I came here to see Jon Horst and Doc Rivers. I watched a full practice session. I would say it’s the most energetic practice session. I remember pre-training season in my 10 years here, and I was told that it was by far the best turned out preseason practice period that we’ve had. I think they’re energized, I’m energized, and I think the city of Milwaukee will be energized very shortly.”

Once the Bucks wrap up preseason play, they’ll tipoff the regular season on Oct. 23 in Philadelphia against the 76ers.

EL SEGUNDO — Before the Lakers embarked on their 1,700-plus mile flight to Milwaukee for Thursday’s preseason matchup against the Bucks at Fiserv Forum, star forward LeBron James questioned why the game was scheduled in the first place.

“Can someone please explain to me why we’re getting on a [plane emoji] and heading to Milwaukee for [one] pre-season game!?!?” James posted to X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.

The Thursday matchup will be the Lakers’ third of six preseason games, with all their exhibitions being played away from their home arena of Crypto.com Arena.

The downtown L.A. venue is going through the final phase of a three-year renovation plan, affecting more than just the Lakers’ preseason schedule.

The NHL’s Kings will play their first seven regular-season games on the road before their home opener on Oct. 24 – two days after the Lakers’ regular-season home opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Oct. 22.

The Lakers are coming off losses to the Timberwolves on Friday night and the Phoenix Suns on Sunday night, with the Lakers hosting both games at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert – about a two-hour bus ride from the team’s El Segundo practice facility.

After Thursday’s matchup, the Lakers will get a couple of days off before playing their final three preseason games in four days:

• vs. the Golden State Warriors at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Tuesday;

• at the Phoenix Suns at the Footprint Center on Oct. 17;

• at the Warriors at Chase Center on Oct. 18.

“Not an ideal preseason for us,” Lakers coach JJ Redick responded after Tuesday’s practice when asked about the preseason travel schedule.

The Lakers would typically play a couple of exhibitions at their home arena in addition to a couple of road games against Western Conference opponents and hosting matchups at a neutral site in the Southern California area  – such as Palm Desert or Anaheim – or even Las Vegas.

Unlike the regular season, teams are mostly responsible for creating their preseason schedules.

ESPN reported that the Lakers’ preseason trip to Milwaukee is part of a prearranged deal of a home-and-home series.

The Bucks traveled to Los Angeles last fall for an exhibition as part of a three-game trip that included matchups against the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder, but they scheduled the matchups in a way that allowed them to be in Southern California for nearly a week.

The Lakers’ trip will be much quicker.

LAKERS AT BUCKS

When: Thursday, 5 p.m. PT

Where: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee

TV/radio: Spectrum SportsNet, 710 AM

Indigenous Peoples’ Day kicks off with live performances and expert-guided exhibits at the Milwaukee Public Museum.

The event is October 14, 11 a.m.- 3 p.m.

Ho-Chunk drum group Little Priest will perform at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. and dance group México Indígena will be performing at noon and 2:00 p.m.

A question and answer session with the drum keeper from Little Priest will be open to visitors before the performance at 10:45.

Milwaukee Public Museum

MPM curators will also be available to discuss the Native American exhibits and allow hands-on learning opportunities with some of MPM’s artifacts and specimens.

For tickets to attend the celebration, click here.

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