Gary D’Amato
The Bucks were magnificent Friday night, but can they do it again?
There was Eric Bledsoe, diving on a prone Jayson Tatum to tie up the ball as if he were Hulk Hogan leaping off the turnbuckle, then striding to mid-court and imploring an already delirious BMO Harris Bradley Center crowd to break the sound barrier.
There was Thon Maker, the forgotten man, the rim protector, swatting Celtics shots into the fifth row and, later in the locker room, spreading his l-o-n-g arms for emphasis and explaining his impact on the game: “God blessed me with great length.”
There was Matthew Dellavedova, knowing what he can get away with in the playoffs and practically crawling inside Terry Rozier’s jersey with his full-court on-ball defense, harassing the previously unflappable Celtics point guard into a mess of a performance.
There was Jabari Parker, emerging from his playoff funk and doing every single thing, big and small, the right way. This is how you get 30 minutes of playing time, Jabari. You earn it.
There was Khris Middleton, burying one sweet jumper after another, each one cutting a little deeper into the wounded Celtics’ pride until they looked nothing like the team that had taken a 2-0 lead over the Bucks in their firstround playoff series.
Watching it all unfold Friday night, you got the feeling that these two teams could have played for 10 more hours and Boston never would have gotten within a dozen points. The final score was 11692 but it wasn’t that close.
This was the way to treat the paying customers, who frankly had given the under-performing Bucks more love than they deserved. This was the way to respect Dr. Naismith’s game, with max effort not only when the ball is in your hands but when it’s in anyone’s hands, on either team. This was the way to come together in the face of adversity, when there were questions about your mental fortitude and Boston had out its broom.
“We needed to send a message tonight that we weren’t going to get swept,” said Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon. “We needed to get that off (the Celtics’) minds and the NBA’s minds. We’re not going to get swept.”
If you follow the Bucks even casually, you can only hope this wasn’t a one-off. This team has demonstrated time and again that it has a short attention span. It’s almost scary that they played so well, because now you’re holding your breath that the alter ego doesn’t show up in Game 4 at noon Sunday, again in the Bradley Center, again in a situation that demands a sense of urgency.
“(We’ve got to play) the same way we Matthew Dellavedova and the Bucks played aggressively in their 116-92 victory over the Celtics on Friday night. played today,” Bledsoe said. “It’s no secret. If we play like this we’re going to be a hard team to beat. If we play like this on both ends of the floor, the sky’s the limit.”
They’re down, 2-1, in the best-of-seven series and there’s still a mountain to climb. On the bright side, it’s no longer Mount Everest.
“We knew what was at stake,” Bledsoe said. “We lose this game, it was going to be tough to win four straight.”
Raise your hand if you saw this coming, and go straight to the front of the class. The Bucks played a dispirited and disjointed Game 2, losing ,120-106, at the TD Garden. In NBA playoff history, teams that fall behind 2-0 have gone on to win the series just 7% of the time.
On top of that, the Bucks had to deal with distractions. Parker complained publicly about his playing time after scoring two points in nearly 25 combined minutes in the first two playoff games, undermining his teammates at the worst possible moment. In a scoreless 10-minute stint in Game 2, his noticeable lack of effort and poor body language hinted at a potentially serious problem brewing.
Either someone got to Parker or he realized he wasn’t doing himself or the team any favors – likely it was a combination – and he was a different player Friday night, engaged and focused and efficient. After picking up his fourth foul he sprinted immediately toward the bench, but interim coach Joe Prunty intercepted him and instructed him to play on. That spoke volumes.
Parker declined to answer questions after the game but his teammates went to bat for him.
“He was huge,” Brogdon said. “Jabari has not struggled but hasn’t been as productive as he can be recently. Tonight, he was an all-star. He just has to keep doing what he’s doing.”
Said Bledsoe: “Jabari is a special talent. All he has to do is stay with it, not get too high or too low.”
Then there was Maker, whose playing time had diminished in recent weeks and who had seemingly lost some confidence. With center John Henson (sore back) out, Maker got 24 minutes and made the most of them, recording five of the Bucks’ 13 blocked shots and making 3 of 4 three-pointers.
“The playoffs really get me hyped,” he said. “The crowd – even if it’s an away crowd – just to hear that noise, it’s motivating. You feel like going out there and leaving everything on the floor. It’s the end of the season. There’s teams sitting at home watching us. I don’t want to be those guys so I’ve got to find a way to get out there and give it everything I’ve got.”
The Bucks got contributions from up and down the lineup and 50 points from the bench. Considering what was on the line, it had to rank among their top two or three performances of the season. Just one question.
Can they do it again?