Cavs at Bucks - are there any wings?

Giannis clanking FTs again. It's getting to be a problem again.

Bucks down 10 as AJ Green is having to play big minutes.

AJ Green isn't even a good G league player - Thanasis is probably better.

Sure would be nice for some of our guys to get healthy.

Giannis air balls a FT. Now 4 for 8 from the line.

Bucks up 1 at the half as Nwora turns the ball over on what would have been a fast break dunk by Giannis to go up 3.

Giannis at 6-5-7 at the half on 4 FG attempts and all those missed FTs.

Brook Lopez 4-5 from 3 carrying the offensive load thus far.

@MichiganPacker posted:

Giannis air balls a FT. Now 4 for 8 from the line.

Yeah, that’s not good. Really his one achilles’ heel.

Brook is on fire. Now 6 for 7 from three.

Giannis is having a quiet night, yet he sits at 10-8-8 in 20 minutes of playing time. Maybe we are a little spoiled?

Bucks up 20 towards the end of the third.

All 10 Bucks that have played have scored. 9 of the 10 have a rebound. 7 of the 10 have an assist.

Up 17 going to the 4th.

Brook with 29 points on 7 for 8 from three.

Nwora playing well.

Giannis at 16-9-8 with another missed FT (4 for 9 from the line)

Giannis with another air ball FT (4 for 11 and keeping the Cavs a little closer)

Cavs get back within 15, mainly because Giannis has been terrible the last few possessions. One air ball 3, one almost air ball 3, missed 5 footer.

From 20 to 10 very quickly.

Single digits. Lead at 9. Mainly because of Giannis being a liability on offense tonight. He doesn't look right.

Giannis with 3 tie-ups and an unforced turnover in the last 3 minutes. Luckily, oth4er guys are playing well

Bucks up 18 as Bickerstaff waives the white flag with 5 minutes left.

Bucks with a great win without Middleton, Holiday, G. Allen, Connaughton, and Matthews and with Giannis having a terrible game on offense (6 for 18 from the field, 0 for 2 from three, and 4 for 11 from the line).

Lopez was on fire. One of the best games Nwora has ever played.

Giannis is 30 for his last 76 from the floor. Maybe the knee isn't quite right yet?

Hell, we’re missing everyone else. Might as well give Giannis a few days off to get right, assuming that a short term rest will solve the problem (hopefully it’s nothing more serious)

They’ve lost five straight, but Cleveland are still a pretty good team, overall. Beating them to move to 11-3 missing so many players, and with an off night from Giannis, could pay real dividends later in the season as the playoffs draw near. Other players are stepping up in a big way.

I wonder just how good this team might be at full strength.

I’m not sure why teams like Chicago and Cleveland and Minnesota and Brooklyn think they can just try to outscore everyone but the game is still about defense and rebounding.  

Milwaukee had 52 boards v 34 for Cleveland.   The Cavs would literally have to shoot like 70% from 3 to overcome that disadvantage.  

When you look at current rosters there’s literally no way a busted up half strength team like Milwaukee should beat a full strength, very talented Cleveland team by 20.  But they did and will continue to do so because Giannis and Lopez are still dominant defensively and just about every role player other than Nwora can play above average D and hit the glass.  

Other than Boston I’m sure every other team in the East knows it’s over if and when Milwaukee gets guys back healthy.   Atlanta and Cleveland and Chicago can get all the pub for adding more scorers and shooters but they simply do not and will not match up and beat the Bucks over the course of a playoff series.  Hell, Boston may not either.  

@Tschmack posted:

I’m not sure why teams like Chicago and Cleveland and Minnesota and Brooklyn think they can just try to outscore everyone but the game is still about defense and rebounding.  

Milwaukee had 52 boards v 34 for Cleveland.   The Cavs would literally have to shoot like 70% from 3 to overcome that disadvantage.  

When you look at current rosters there’s literally no way a busted up half strength team like Milwaukee should beat a full strength, very talented Cleveland team by 20.  But they did and will continue to do so because Giannis and Lopez are still dominant defensively and just about every role player other than Nwora can play above average D and hit the glass.  

Other than Boston I’m sure every other team in the East knows it’s over if and when Milwaukee gets guys back healthy.   Atlanta and Cleveland and Chicago can get all the pub for adding more scorers and shooters but they simply do not and will not match up and beat the Bucks over the course of a playoff series.  Hell, Boston may not either.  

I think Boston has to be the favorite, for the same reasons that Milwaukee is #2 plus a better rotation 1-7. They have a great defensive team. I hate Marcus Smart, but he's a dirtier version of Jrue Holiday. Robert Williams is an all-defensive team member. Horford is very good on that end as well. And the biggest difference now is that Tatum has matured. The scouts used to say his weakness was that he'd rather score 30 and lose than score 15 and win. Now that he's established, he's less selfish and he's also putting more effort in on defense. Jaylen Brown is obviously also an all-star.

Boston has Tatum, Brown, Horford, R. Williams, G. Williams, Smart, and Brogdon. Derrick White is their 8th guy and then their depth drops off a cliff.

Bucks are better 1-3 (Giannis, Middleton, Holiday) vs. Tatum, Brown, Smart.

Celtics are better 4-7 (R. Williams, Horford, Brogdon, and G. Williams) vs. Lopez, Portis, Connaughton, and G. Allen. Brogdon is a huge get for them this offseason and they gave up zero to get him.

Bucks are vastly superior 8-13 and it's not even close (Carter, Hill, Ibaka, Matthews, Beauchamp, Nwora). The Celtics have guys like Hauser, Pritchard, Kornet, and Vonleh in those spots.

If it comes down to a playoff series at full strength, it will be decided by those guys that get playing time when the rotations get tightened to 7-8 guys and whose non-stars hit open shots. The wild card in all this is what happens with G. Allen's minutes. He was abysmal against the Celtics last year. If Ingles can take over those minutes and be the player he was in Utah- the Bucks are in great shape. Maybe the Bucks get Jae Crowder for Allen and he gets those minutes?

Giannis' recent dip is something to keep an eye on.

Mmmmmm, wings.