"So you're John Salmons, the best Milwaukee import since Bavarian hops, and you're going back and forth in the fourth quarter with Joe Johnson like Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins, matching the Atlanta guard shot for remarkable shot in yet another of his habitually clutch performances for the Bucks.

So what's that like?

"The best person to explain that in this locker room is Brandon (Jennings)," Salmons said Monday night after dropping 32 on the Hawks, "because he got 55."

And that right there would be one of the better reasons to fear the Deer.

Jennings, a strong rookie of the year candidate in part because of the double-nickels he scored on Golden State back in November, had already showered, dressed and left the locker room. He had time to do that because he had poor shooting night, just 1 of 8, and wasn't on the floor when the Bucks wrapped up an exhilarating 98-95 comeback against the Hawks.

But Jennings wasn't the only one. Andrew Bogut struggled again, going 4 of 11. Ersan Ilyasova couldn't find the basket, either.

And still, these Bucks continue to find a way.

They did it with Luke Ridnour. They did it with Carlos Delfino. They did it with Salmons making five of seven shots and scoring 16 points in a fourth-quarter zone-like trance of which he said, "It was just one of those games where every shot you take was going to go in, no matter how you took it.""