Bucks performing like true contenders
Bucks have all the hallmarks of an NBA Finals team
Jeff Zillgitt: Milwaukee has hallmarks of a team headed to NBA Finals
The Bucks dominated the Pistons. There’s no other way to put it after Milwaukee completed a convincing sweep with a 127-104 victory in Game 4 on Monday and advanced to the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals for the first time since 2001.
The Bucks have been the most dominant team in the playoffs offensively and defensively. It is the hallmark of an NBA Finals team.
The Bucks are the top-rated offense (102.2 points per 100 possessions) and the fourth-best defense (96.8 points allowed per 100 possessions) for a playoffbest 23.5 net rating — the second-best first-round net rating since the NBA went to an opening-round best-of-seven format in 2003.
It’s the kind of deep and versatile two-way play that propelled the Bucks to the league’s best record in the regular
season, and the kind of basketball they will need in the next round against the Celtics in what should be a fantastic series given Boston’s impressive performance against the Pacers.
Milwaukee worked hard to make it look easy. It won the four games by an average 23.8 points, had at least a 20point lead in every game and barely had to play anyone more than 30 minutes per game.
Yes, the Pistons were without Blake Griffin for the first two games and with a less-than-100% healthy Griffin in the final two. But it wouldn’t have mattered if Detroit had two healthy Blake Griffins.
Not when the Bucks have Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is the front-runner, along with the Rockets’ James Harden, to win MVP, and is a strong contender for Defensive Player of the Year.
In Game 4, Antetokounmpo scored a playoff career-high 41 points and added nine rebounds, four blocks, three assists and one steal. He averaged 26.3 points, 12 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 blocks and shot 52.1% from the field.
How are the Celtics going to guard him? Antetokounmpo’s length, speed and power overwhelm opponents, and he does it without a reliable 3-point shot. Boston coach Brad Stevens and his staff do not have easy decisions to make with their defensive game plan.
Use single coverage, and Antetokounmpo can get what he wants. Double him, and he can get the ball moving to open teammates.
And the Bucks are more than just Antetokounmpo.
Center Brook Lopez is a 3-point shooter who can go inside. Point guard Eric Bledsoe and small forward Khris Middleton are capable two-way players, both averaging 19 points against Detroit. Milwaukee can go six or seven players into its bench, and Coach of the Year candidate Mike Budenholzer has managed the roster with expertise.
But it comes back to Antetokounmpo. He makes it all work for the Bucks, and as they go deeper into the playoffs, the pressure will grow. How does he handle that pressure? How do his teammates handle that pressure?
It will be fascinating to watch. This now is all new ground for Antetokounmpo and most of his teammates.
The Bucks have been building toward this for years, even since they drafted Antetokounmpo and realized what might be possible if he became the player they thought he could be.
He became the player they thought, and what’s possible — a realistic shot to play in the NBA Finals with Antetokounmpo leading the way — has never been closer.