MILWAUKEE -- Monta Ellis and Ekpe Udoh are going to give it a try Wednesday night against Indiana. Both missed practice Tuesday and didn't participate in Milwaukee's shootaround Wednesday.
Bucks coach Scott Skiles saw both as questionable, but both told him they wanted to play. Ellis injured his thumb in Monday's victory over Philadelphia. The swelling was so great Tuesday that he couldn't practice. It has gone down a bit Wednesday but is still noticeable.
Because Udoh is going to give it a go, veteran forward Drew Gooden remains inactive. Other than the injured Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Gooden is the only player on the roster to not play in the team's first six games. He has been inactive since rookie forward John Henson returned from a knee injury.
"I talked to him," Skiles said of Gooden. "That's all we can do, he and I talk about it. I told him there's no permanence to it or anything. It's just a decision I've went with now, it isn't an easy decision. We will take it game by game now."
Because of the lack of depth at guard position, Milwaukee has to have one big man inactive to reach the 13 player maximum on gameday.
"I wouldn't hesitate to put Drew in the game," Skiles said. "It's just a numbers game right now. I just made the decision to go with some of the longer guys. The way we are set up we have to have a big guy on the inactive list."
No carryover: Late last season, Milwaukee and Indiana had a bit of bad blood. Bucks forward Larry Sanders was suspended, and Pacers forwards David West and Danny Granger were fined for an April skirmish.
Skiles doesn't think there will be any carryover in the new year. Pacers coach Frank Vogel agreed.
"I don't think there is much to it now," Skiles said. "They were a better team than us last year. We're trying to move up. We're trying to be a better team."
Three-year anniversary: A reporter noted during Skiles' pregame press gathering that Wednesday marked the three year anniversary of Brandon Jennings' 55-point game against Golden State in the point guard's rookie year.
"It was a great night," Skiles said. "I guess when you say that, I don't know if I should have got him a gift or if he should have gotten me one."
Follow Andrew Gruman on Twitter.
