Former Suns guard Jevon Carter makes impact on offense, defense in Bucks' win

Athletes always have extra motivation to beat a former team after they've been traded or cut.

Milwaukee Bucks starting point guard Jevon Carter definitely did in the Bucks' 116-104 win over the Suns on Tuesday. Carter scored nine points on 3-of-6 shooting, added three rebounds, one steal and an assist in 24 minutes played. His three made shots were 3-pointers, and tied for the game high with teammate Jae Crowder (11 points) and the Suns' Cameron Payne (13 points).

"Competing. JC (Jevon Carter), Jae Crowder, they bring out the competitive nature for sure," Payne said after the game about playing against two former Suns. "It is always fun playing against them,"

Carter's past years with Phoenix was a footnote to the major storylines in Tuesday's game.

One was how the Suns were going to stop the league's fourth-best scorer Giannis Antetokounmpo (31.5 points per game). And two, the return of former Suns starting forward Crowder, who's now with the Bucks after he mutually agreed to part ways with the Suns during training camp in September.

Carter played with Phoenix during their impressive 8-0 run in the Orlando bubble when they barely missed the playoffs in September 2020. The Suns were the second of four teams he's played on after he was drafted by Memphis out of West Virginia in the second round in 2018. In November 2020, he signed a three-year deal for $11.5 million to stay with the Suns, and played with them during their run to the NBA Finals in 2021.

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Carter was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in August 2021, was waived by Brooklyn in February 2022 and signed with Milwaukee that same month.

Antetokounmpo, who finished with a game-high 36 points, told The Republic after the game that both Carter and Crowder, who play the role of defensive specialists and fit well into the Bucks' top-rated defense, had "extra juice" and played with a "chip on their shoulder."

"They have that individual pride: Jevon picking (up) guys full court making it tough for them; Jae being physical staying in front, using his hands, getting deflections; both of them can really defend," Antetokounmpo said. "Obviously, they know the plays, they know what’s coming, they (were) able to communicate to us and know for themselves how they’re gonna guard that play, that definitely helps.

He added, "I think that everybody who plays wants to feel value whenever they play against their old team. They played a little bit harder and that’s what they did tonight, and thank god they was able to help us win the game. They both made big shots in the fourth quarter that gave us a breather.”

The biggest shot from Carter was his final 3 with 7:56 left to play after the Suns made a run to take a 95-92 lead.

Carter is thriving with the Bucks, who have the league's best record at 50-19. He's started in 35 of their 69 games, is producing career-bests with 8.0 points, 2.6 rebounds, 0.9 steals and 22.4 minutes played per game this season.

“It’s the guys around me. From the front office, to the coaching staff and the players," Carter said about his production this season. "They see how hard I work and they allow me to work and go out there and do my thing. Normally I’ve had a hold on me, but the Bucks allow me to go out there and be free.”

Carter's steals average is second behind his backcourt mate and Bucks All-Star Jrue Holiday (1.2), and his 42.2% from beyond the arc is third on their team.

Carter was nicknamed the Suns' "bulldog" for his defensive tenacity when he was in Phoenix. Now he's applied that role to the NBA's best team, which had the league's longest win streak at 16 games before it lost to Philadelphia on March 4.

"He loves to defend, he loves to change the game on that end of the court," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. "He's helping us with his offense, too, his 3-point shooting, he got a big offense rebound. Jevon's been really good for us."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Bucks guard Jevon Carter motivated facing Suns, his former team