Bucks up 9-7 early. Dame is 0 for 5, so this is one of his potential dud games.
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Bucks down 15-12 now. Hawks are getting easy transition baskets and the only offense the Bucks have so far is Giannis.
Dame has been terrible on offense and defense.
Bucks down 28-26 after one. Giannis at 7-5-4.
Dame is scoreless and being hunted on switches for easy baskets.
Middleton has looked decent.
Jackson Jr. with 2 fouls in 7 minutes.
Hawks have 12 FT attempts, the Bucks have 2.
@DurangoDoug posted:Bucks 55-49 at the half
Despite a really bad half from Dame (3 for 13), a typically Giannis performance at the line (4 for 8), going 7 for 26 from three.
Giannis misses another FT - 5 for 10. It's been a problem for years, but it still is frustrating that one of the best 25 players in history can't hit 70% (but, see Shaq, Wilt, and Russell, too)
Bucks can't separate because they've given up numerous blow by layups. Only up 2.
Jalen Johnson gives the Hawks the lead. Bogdonovich hit with a T. 8179 Hawks.
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Lillard for 3 to retake the lead. Then Johnson gets 2 at the other end.
Bucks trail by 1 going to the 4th. Trent, Prince, and Jackson have been black holes on the offensive end. Middleton looks like he's playing in slow motion.
Bucks have had 21 fouls called against them. Hawks only 13.
Taurean Prince and Trent Jr. have played like the minimum salary guys they are. 2 for 13 between them. Green has 5 fouls. Middleton's legs aren't right yet (if they ever will be again).
Connaughton might be necessary. He can't possibly be any worse than Trent Jr. has been tonight
Looks like it's going to be close one right to the end 98-95 Bucks with a little over 4 minutes left
Fuck Trae Young and these bullshit refs. He does not deserve this type of treatment.
Bucks up 5, but can't get the ball inbounds and have to call multiple timeouts because of turnover issues.
Middleton throws it to Trent who has to go out of bounds to catch it. Not impressed with Middleton, in the last few series.
Lillard with a good defensive play, to wrap things up for the Bucks.
Middleton with two dumb turnovers near the end almost did them in. Thankfully the refs didn’t give any more FTs to Trae Young.
Giannis was really good and Dame played well in stretches especially later in the 4Q. Was also good to see Lopez have a semi decent game on both ends of the court.
Here's what Championship rim protection looks like.
When I tell you he’s the best player in the world trust me he is the best player in the world because ain’t NOBODY averaging almost 33/12/6 on 60+ FG% while playing literally generational defense with winning play after winning play on that end.. insane
— 🦌💫 (@GiannisWorld) December 15, 2024
pic.twitter.com/lqTe3rZOoW https://t.co/DwpXkqlA5s
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So if they win this thing have I seen the Bucks win 1 or 2 championships?
Wasn't an NBA fan as a wee lad in 1972 so that doesn't count.
If they beat OKC, I'm counting it as THREE mofo.
OKC is really good and if the Bucks beat them, they will have earned it.
The NBA should have 4 or 5 of these every year, more banners! More winners!
One issue with OKC is with Holmgren out who is going to try to defend Giannis? Hartenstein is a solid player, but Holmgren is much more dynamic.
As long as the refs don’t go Trae Young on SGA i like the Bucks chances.
@Tschmack posted:One issue with OKC is with Holmgren out who is going to try to defend Giannis? Hartenstein is a solid player, but Holmgren is much more dynamic.
As long as the refs don’t go Trae Young on SGA i like the Bucks chances.
I don't think Chet Holmgren is going to defense Giannis in isolation either.
Al Horford supposedly guards Giannis as well as anyone. In the two Celtics games this year (both narrow losses), Giannis has gone 31 for 54 from the field and averaged 36/12/3 in those two games. In the 7 game playoff loss to Boston in 2022 (without Middleton and with Holiday being terrible on the offensive end), Giannis averaged 34/15/7 on 46% shooting.
Nobody is stopping Giannis one on one. Even in 2019, Kawhi needed two other DPOY-level guys to stop him (Marc Gasol and Ibaka).
The only thing that stops Giannis at this point is his FT shooting.
What the NBA cup allows the Bucks to find out is how some of their bench guys play under pressure. We know Giannis, Middleton, Dame, Lopez, and Portis have performed well deep in the playoffs. We don't know how AJ Green, Trent, T. Prince, and Ajax will. Ajax played in a national title game with UConn, so that's not nothing. Trent has played 11 playoff games, none past the first round. Prince has never been past the first round. The biggest games AJ Green has ever played in are MVC playoff games and a couple of NIT games.
With as good as A Jax defends they have to start him. I also like bringing Middleton and Trent Jr. off the bench. AJ Green and Portis are your other bench guys.
That’s a solid group IMO.
Great call guys!🥳
AJax played tremendous defense on SGA last night and, because the officials treated it almost like a playoff game, they didn't call the ticky-tack fouls that AJax (and AJ Green) have gotten called for. This is the kind of stuff that a veteran with a deserved reputation for being a great defender (Jrue Holiday, Alex Caruso) often gets away with that Jackson and Green get called for immediately.
As we've discussed before, I think the 2-8 start might have been a blessing in disguise. It forced Doc to play AJ Green and AJax more since Connaughton and Delon Wright were not going to get the job done. AJ Green's defense is a lot better than anyone expected, and AJax (even with his occassional careless passes) is guy who could make an NBA all-defensive team someday.
How deep the Bucks go in the playoffs may end up coming down to whether AJax can make enough wide open 3s to keep him on the floor in crunch time. Their closing lineup in recent games when Middleton was available was often Giannis, Dame, Lopez, Middleton, and AJax. AJax is going to get wide open looks every time down the court. Can he become a PJ Tucker-type corner 3 shooter and make 38-40% under playoff pressure? If he can do that, the Bucks are going to challenge the Celtics and Cavs in the East. If he only hits 32-34%, they probably won't. In other words is he going to be Eric Bledsoe or PJ Tucker on offense in the playoffs?