Milwaukee, WI
Nickel: There’s a lot to appreciate about Bobby Portis this season, including how he reworked his jump shot
Video: Bobby Portis credits staff, extra long year for playing 82 games
Bobby Portis of the Milwaukee Bucks credits work ethic, training staff and extra long year for playing all 82 games this season.
There’s a lot to appreciate about Bobby Portis this year, and 82 things to appreciate about him this week. But there’s one thing that maybe has been overlooked a little bit this whole time he’s been in Milwaukee: his shot.
The 6-foot-10 power forward actually changed it a lot, with the help of someone he affectionally call an “OG.” Marcus McCarroll, who first met Portis almost 20 years ago, has two winter coats. One for his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, and another for Milwaukee.
“The Arkansas one doesn’t work well enough in Milwaukee,” McCarroll said with a laugh.
In February during the all-star break, Portis didn’t rest – though he had every reason to. Instead, he met up with McCarroll, his longtime friend, mentor, fitness trainer and former youth coach. McCarroll came to Wisconsin to work with Portis, taking advantage of the down time by putting in the extra work, even if it meant sneaking out to the gym late at night after rest.
Bobby Portis played in every game this season
And that work is partly why, for the first time in his career, Portis played in all 82 regular-season games this season.
“It’s been cool, man, just to be available for my team,” Portis said after practice early this week. “Knowing that I’m going to be out there, ready to go.”
During the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 season with the New York Knicks, Portis played all 66 games, but this year really stood out. For a Bucks team riddled with injured players, Portis was reliable, always there, always ready to contribute.
As the Bucks spent Tuesday and Wednesday preparing for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series against Indiana on Sunday, they were without injured Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo. So coach Doc Rivers focused on two scorers and playmakers, Khris Middleton and Portis.
More: Game times, schedule set for Bucks vs Pacers in first round of 2024 NBA playoffs
And Portis, who averaged 24.5 minutes per game, embraced the opportunity. He’s ready for the postseason. He credits the Bucks training staff, his work ethic and playing with Team USA in the national basketball program last summer as his reasons for playing in peak form all year.
“I’ve been hoopin’ since July,” Portis said, “you feel me; I’ve been hoopin’ for a minute. Came into training camp already ready to roll. I was in the best shape of my career. And I think it kind of showed throughout the season.
“You know I play hard, so … to play with energy every night. It was great.”
Putting in the work to improve his shot
But McCarroll emphasizes that Portis’ work journey goes way back before then, back to when he started strength training at age 15 seriously.
The best way to tell Portis’ progress, especially offensively, is in his shot. Portis used to sometimes put the ball almost over his head – in his college days, his early days as a pro and even when he got to the Bucks for his first season in 2020.
Now, Portis’ shot is pretty, whether coming from the post or outside. He’s shooting 40.7% on three-pointers and 54.5% on twos. Remember when he said he used to work on that baby sky hook to exhaustion until he hated it? Well it’s part of his shooting arsenal now.
“It was like a reverse process for us,” McCarroll said. “We had a trial and error, we were trying to understand the shot before, instead of studying the shot and trying to tweak it. We did it backwards, but I like it now.”
All that work took years.
“Absolutely had to tweak his shot just a little bit,” McCarroll said this week in a phone call. “He had the on-top-of the head release. And it wasn’t so much about his accuracy, but he would let it go at different points a lot of times, or he wouldn’t have his hips under the ball. So the timing mechanism was off a little bit.”
Portis and McCarroll sought outside help and opinions. They tried a lot of different things.
“We really focused on that that year that we came into Milwaukee to work on our shot,” McCarroll said. “It took years to get to that point where we could go in and change a shot, you know. I tell kids it’s hours and hours you got to put into it to make it feel natural and be able to do it repetitive times over and over and over and over and over again.”
Portis also does a good job of bending his knees with that shot, especially when he’s open.
“It’s more of a balance thing – I try to make sure that I’m on balance best as I can,” Portis said. “Shooting is all about form and balance, not leaning to the left or right.
“Nine years ago when I come into the league, it was kind of funky. I was bringing it over my head to shoot. … My form is way different.”
Nickel: Cool, calm and collected, Bucks coach Doc Rivers adapts to a practice without Giannis and Damian Lillard
Rivers, who has openly coached Portis from Day 1, it seems, on how he wants him to approach his shooting against various defenses – and not rushing – also seems impressed by Portis. He said he always thought highly of him, but coaches and players form opinions about others in the league, and those opinions could be misguided at times.
“It’s an example of you don’t know a guy until you play with him or coach him. I knew he could shoot; I didn’t know he could shoot, you know what I mean?” Rivers said.
NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award
As for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year Award, Portis will probably get a lot of votes again this year. Will it be enough to finally win it? That’s unclear.
“I’m cool with who I am and I impact winning at the highest level,” he said.
MILWAUKEE – Forecast from FOX6 Meteorologist Lisa Michaels
Mostly sunny skies with partly sunny skies in the afternoon. There is a slight chance for a few sprinkles, but most areas remain dry. Highs near 60F on Sunday.
Patchy frost is possible again Sunday night into Monday morning as low temps inland can reach the lower 30s.
Cooler on Monday with easterly winds- low 50s near the lake to upper 50s inland.
A big boost in temperatures on Tuesday in the low 70s associated with a clipper system will bring the next chance of rain and a few storms.
Today: Mostly Sunny. Slight chance sprinkles.
High: 60°
Wind: NW 5-15
Tonight: Mostly Clear. Patchy frost.
Low: 38°
Wind: N 5
Monday: 53 LAKE. Mostly sunny.
High: 57°
Wind: E 5-10
Tuesday: Chance storms. Breezy.
AM Low: 39° High: 71°
Wind: SW 10-25
Wednesday:Partly sunny.
AM Low: 46° High: 59°
Wind: NW 5-15
Thursday: Mostly Sunny. Slight chance sprinkles.
AM Low: 42° High: 64°
Wind: S 5-10
Friday: Chance of Rain
AM Low: 47° High: 72°
Wind: SW 5-15
6-day planner
FOX6 Weather Extras
Local perspective:
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX LOCAL Mobile app
FOX Weather app
FOX Weather
Big picture view:
Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
FOX6 Weather Experts in social media
Milwaukee, WI
Milwaukee Brewers Flamethrower Jacob Misiorowski Has Historic Night Against Yankees – World Baseball Network
The Milwaukee Brewers shut out the New York Yankees in a 6-0 victory on Friday night, and Jacob Misiorowski was dominated at a historic level.
In the first two innings of Friday night’s game, Misiorowski threw eight of the 10 fastest pitches ever by a starting pitcher. Of those eight, seven are now the fastest pitches ever thrown by a starting pitcher, according to Codify Baseball.
Misiorowski’s velocity has been a major topic of discussion ever since he made his debut last season. He lights up the radar gun early in games, but usually sees his velocity drop as the game goes on. However, in the fifth inning, he was able to throw a 103 mph fastball to Ryan McMahon. He also threw a 102.7 mph fastball to Cody Bellinger in the sixth inning.
Misiorowski leads all of baseball in strikeouts, notching his 70th strikeout of the season in the sixth inning of Friday’s game. Misiorowski has a 2.45 ERA on the season and had 11 strikeouts against the Yankees. The 60 fastest pitches thrown by a starting pitcher this season all belong to the Brewers ace.
It was Misiorowski’s first time facing the Yankees, and it was not just fans who were left in awe. Spencer Jones, the Yankees’ No. 6 prospect, made his MLB debut on Friday night and felt happy to just foul a pitch off against the flamethrowing righty.
“I’ve never seen pitches that hard in my life,” Jones said after the game, per MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. “To foul off a couple is pretty great, so I’ll take that for now.”
Misiorowski’s teammate, Sal Frelick, was also in disbelief when Misiorowski kept touching triple digits late in the game.
“I kept looking up at the velo after every pitch as he got deep,” Frelick said per McCalvy. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Misiorowski picked a great night to showcase his best stuff. CC Sabathia was in the house to be inducted into the Brewers Wall of Honor, and he gave Misiorowski a glowing endorsement before the game.
“I love Misiorowski,” said Sabathia, per McCalvy. “I think he’s going to be a great pitcher.
“Honestly, he reminds me of myself as a young pitcher.”
If Misiorowski can become the type of player Sabathia was, he will be breaking records for years to come. He has played his best in big games so far in his career, but he is still only 24 and getting better with every start.
He credited adrenaline to his sustained velocity on Friday, so it makes sense that he has his best stuff in big games.
Photo: Milwaukee Brewers’ Jacob Misiorowski pitches during the second inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Friday, May 8, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)
MILWAUKEE – Forecast from FOX6 Meteorologist Lisa Michaels
Partly sunny skies on Saturday with a slight chance for a few sprinkles or a shower.
Temperatures warmer on Saturday in the mid to upper 60s. Isolated 70s near the border. Breezy with winds gusting near 30mph.
Cooler temperatures in the upper 50s on Sunday (Mother’s Day) with increasing clouds. Patchy frost Saturday night into Sunday and Sunday night into Monday.
Next chance of rain and storms arrives on Tuesday.
Today: Partly sunny. A few showers possible. Breezy.
High: 67°
Wind: NW 10-25
Tonight: Partly cloudy. Patchy frost.
Low: 42°
Wind: NW 5-10
Sunday: Increasing clouds.
High: 57°
Wind: NW 5-15
Monday: Mostly sunny.
AM Low: 39° High: 59°
Wind: E 5-10
Tuesday: Warm and windy. Chance storms.
AM Low: 42° High: 68°
Wind: SW 10-25
Wednesday:Partly sunny.
AM Low: 46° High: 59°
Wind: NW 5-15
Thursday: Mostly sunny.
AM Low: 42° High: 64°
Wind: S 5-10
6-day planner
FOX6 Weather Extras
Local perspective:
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX LOCAL Mobile app
FOX Weather app
FOX Weather
Big picture view:
Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
FOX6 Weather Experts in social media
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