Raptors 105, Bucks 99: Milwaukee on brink of elimination

HowardK4 said:
If the Bucks bench, other than Hill, can contribute, and if Toronto's bench scoring returns to "normal", the Bucks have a chance. When you have guys like VanVleet going 7 of 9 from 3 pt land it has an impact.
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Agree and I don’t get why #24 is not seeing the floor more. He made such an impact vs Boston and he brings so much energy and athleticism
 
I think Giannis is trying to do it all himself now that some of the team is not shooting as well and we have lost 3 in a row. They have to get back to what got them here. That is why I hope they watch the tape and figure it out for Saturday.

We will find out how tough mentally the Bucks are as well as if Giannis really is the best in the league. If they get back to Milwaukee and win this series then we will have our answer.
 
ChampionshipBelt said:
I think Giannis is trying to do it all himself now that some of the team is not shooting as well and we have lost 3 in a row. They have to get back to what got them here. That is why I hope they watch the tape and figure it out for Saturday.

We will find out how tough mentally the Bucks are as well as if Giannis really is the best in the league. If they get back to Milwaukee and win this series then we will have our answer.
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What got them here was 3 point shooting and defense and both are MIA. Way to many times defensive rotations were late or non existent and how many loose balls and offensive rebounds did Toronto get last night? I don’t think it’s lack of effort my sense is their legs are gone. Giannis was short or air balled how many FT? And tired legs lead to poor shooting and slow to react of defense. Not sure if that true but it would answer some questions.

As to Giannis i tend to agree he’s trying to do too much and pressing. Multiple times when they double him he makes the wrong pass or force play. And if Van Fleet does not channel his inner Steph Curry or if Powell does not play like he’s Klay Thompson I think Milwaukee is at worst 3-2 and maybe got a close out last night.
 
It also seems to me that they need to tweak what they are doing a little. Giannis continues to attack, far too much IMO, from the top of the key. It plays right into the Raptor defense which allows them to wall him off at the FT line and still protect the 3 point line fairly easily. It seems like attacking from the baseline or posting him up deeper along the wings or baseline would be more effective. If the double comes either from the ball side or weak side you kick it out more easily to a shooter in the corner or along the sideline. I'm not a b-ball guru by any degree but what he's doing right now just seems to be exactly what Toronto expects and is prepared for.
 
57packer said:
It also seems to me that they need to tweak what they are doing a little. Giannis continues to attack, far too much IMO, from the top of the key. It plays right into the Raptor defense which allows them to wall him off at the FT line and still protect the 3 point line fairly easily. It seems like attacking from the baseline or posting him up deeper along the wings or baseline would be more effective. If the double comes either from the ball side or weak side you kick it out more easily to a shooter in the corner or along the sideline. I'm not a b-ball guru by any degree but what he's doing right now just seems to be exactly what Toronto expects and is prepared for.
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This is 100% spot on. And you don’t have to make the hard pass. I recall one time Giannis was doubled and had Mirotic 5 feet on the wing , easy throw but he forced a hard cross court pass to Middleton that went OB. Make smart decisions
 
It all starts to break down early in the shot clock, when the Bucks stand around on the outside with the point dribbling the ball, and nobody moving. That's the complete opposite of what they did up to game 4, in these playoffs. It's as if they abandoned their quick ball movement, and repositioning themselves on the floor to create mismatches in favor of keeping the ball outside then having Giannis make a desperation drive as the clock runs down.

Their alternate plan is to throw up any potential three, no matter how far out of position players are for a possible rebound, or when there's a chance that movement will give them a better option.

It's as if they scrapped their entire body of work for the season, and to suddenly allow themselves to be outfoxed on defense. They simply aren't covering like they should and it has nothing to do with Leonard. He's going to get his points, they know it, and they should be stopping everyone else. They need to goad Leonard into driving into positions where he'll be called for charging, not giving him open lanes where he can split defenders and get hacking fouls called so he can go to the line.

Points in the paint are essential to the Bucks, but they don't all have to come from Giannis. They need to take advantage of everyone getting in there with mismatches to score. It seems like all our shots in the paint lack movement. They're straight up, and that's when you get blocked.

Something I'd really like to see is more of George Hill driving into the lane for the shot or the dish off. Bledsoe and Brogdon could learn from him. He's fluid, and knows you can't get in too deep, or there's no passing lanes.
 
What 57 brought up was exactly what Barkley and Shaq were speaking of the other night. The double teams are coming to easy when Giannis is isolating on the top of the key.

I rewatched games 4 and 5 and one thing that stood out was spacing on offense was poor. Part of that is Toronto essentially was / is playing a 3-2 matchup zone. You don’t get to force Toronto to switch and movement is limited. Even when Giannis has the ball on the blocks or wing instead of making plays there many times he dribbles the ball out of the block and relocated back to the top of the key. Leonard is a fantastic defender but that’s just making his job easier

Some things I would like to see tonight....Bledsoe being more aggressive in transition and taking the ball to the rim.......more Pat Connaughton, he brings energy, very athletic and can shoot. ....Middleton looking for his shot early. He’s a knock down perimeter guy but needs to get into a flow early .....stop switching on everything, fight thru picks/screens....hit the 3 early and often. Make Toronto play more straight man, also helps mentally seeing balls drop
 
Tonight's game will decide just how good the Bucks really are. If they can't advance to the finals we need to question where they're really heading with Middleton, Brogdon, and Bledsoe. It might not be what the Bucks need, in combination.
 
TW said:
Tonight's game will decide just how good the Bucks really are. If they can't advance to the finals we need to question where they're really heading with Middleton, Brogdon, and Bledsoe. It might not be what the Bucks need, in combination.
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Well Bledsoe just got an extension. Long term deal. 4 years $70m. Brogdon you keep so valuable on both ends. I know people have angst on Middleton but I am not going to look at one series in a vacuum. I can see both sides of that debate.
 
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