Luc Richard Mbah a Moute smiled as he grabbed a bottle of water following practice Monday afternoon at the Cousins Center, his grey Milwaukee Bucks shirt blackened by sweat.

He smiled, and joked with a reporter about "taking his knee" – even though that reporter said it was 50 or so years old.

Mbah a Moute laughed.

"But you said it was good."

This is where the 26-year-old forward is at right now, but the Bucks hope that when it comes time to start the playoffs in a couple weeks his surgically repaired right knee will be feeling good enough.

"Luc had the surgery last year and I don’t know if he’s ever going to be 100 percent this year for us," Bucks coach Jim Boylan said. "It may be one of those things where he’s got to take another summer and continue the rehab to get back to really, really comfortable with his knee."

Mbah a Moute has missed 24 games this season, and when he has played he has clearly not been as effective on the defensive end as in years past. Through the first three seasons of his career, he contributed just under three win shares a season (an estimate of the number of wins contributed by a player due to his defense) compared to just 1.1 last year and 1.2 this year.

Yet the 6-foot, 8-inch Mbah a Moute remains an important factor to what the Bucks will – or will not – be able to do in the postseason as a matchup with the Heat and three-time Most Valuable Player LeBron James and nine-time All Star Dwyane Wade looms.

"We’re counting on Luc to help us in situations where he can help us, but certainly having him as an option defensively makes a huge difference for us because he’s a multiple player defender and can guard different guys," Boylan said. "When you have a guy like that you can put him out there on a variety of people and it makes everything much more flexible for you defensively."

With Mbah a Moute missing chunks of games, Marquis Daniels has been the one often called upon to defend the team’s other big perimeter scorer. Daniels is definitely willing, but he is two inches shorter and has significantly more wear on the tires than Mbah a Moute at 32 years old.

That said, Daniels’ recent play on the defensive end has given the team confidence behind him.

"Marquis is a great defender," Bucks center Larry Sanders said. "He can really move his feet. He doesn’t reach a lot. He stays solid."

Boylan anticipates getting both players plenty of court time in the final six games of the season, beginning tonight against the Heat to start a four game, five day East Coast road trip. During this stretch, the Bucks will also big wing scorers in former teammate Tobias Harris (16.3 points, 8.4 rebounds since being traded) in Orlando, Josh Smith in Atlanta, Gerald Henderson in Charlotte.

The Bucks host Denver and Andre Iguodala in the regular season home finale on April 15 and finish the year in Oklahoma City against Kevin Durant on April 17.

Boylan doesn’t anticipate resting Mbah a Moute too much down this stretch, saying his knee’s condition is what it is at this point and just needs to be managed. That’s where Daniels comes in, and the duo will play key role during the home stretch this season.

"Now you’ve got two guys in Marquis and Luc who can defend multiple guys and have the bodies to be physical when they need to be physical, move their feet, understand how to play defense, two veteran guys," Boylan said. "It’s great to have both of them back because it gives you one more weapon."