Milwaukee Bucks: Thon Maker’s Defense Set The Tone In Game 1

As the Milwaukee Bucks stole homecourt advantage away from the Toronto Raptors in Game 1, Thon Maker‘s defense proved to be key.

The shockwaves that reverberated around the NBA community when the Milwaukee Bucks selected Thon Maker with the 10th overall pick in last summer’s draft have certainly dissipated now.

Viewed by most to be a prospect far too raw to offer any tangible contributions in the NBA for at least a couple of seasons, Maker went from strength to strength as his role increased in what was a surprisingly active rookie year.

Still, even having been particularly impressive in Milwaukee’s final few games of the season, nobody could have expected the type of performance the 20-year-old native of South Sudan produced in his playoff debut on Saturday.

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Least of all the Toronto Raptors.

Returning to Ontario, where he plied his trade in high school at Orangeville Prep’s Athlete Institute only 12 months earlier, Maker played a total of 15 minutes in Game 1 at the Air Canada Centre. In that time, Maker managed to show his usual energy and shooting touch on offense, but left a much more indelible mark on the game’s direction defensively.

Although Maker can occasionally struggle in guarding the pick-and-roll, and can suffer from lapses of discipline more than concentration, he has good defensive instincts and the physical tools to assert himself.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greg Monroe and Malcolm Brogdon were the stars of Milwaukee’s surprise success in the series opener, but it was Maker who made much of that possible by establishing a presence on defense.

Let’s take a closer look at the many ways in which Maker managed to influence the game defensively, in spite of relatively limited minutes.

Understanding Matchups

Heading into Game 1, there was a widely held concern about how Thon Maker would cope with the physically imposing Jonas Valanciunas. The Lithuanian center may have presented opportunities for Maker to stretch the floor offensively, but it was hard not to see the rookie being exploited in any kind of post duel between the two.

Not only did that prove not to be the case, but Valanciunas’ presence was the spark for much of the positive work that Milwaukee’s rookie managed to do defensively.

The Raptors finished the regular season as the NBA’s leaders in points per possession on post-ups (0.98), but importantly they only ranked 21st in terms of the frequency with which they resorted to that option (5.7 percent).

Instead, Toronto’s priority remains creating quality scoring opportunities for Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan. Rather than targeting Milwaukee’s undersized center when the opportunity presented itself, the focus in Game 1 was to create space in halfcourt sets and find lanes for the guards to drive to the rim. Whether or not the Bucks were expecting this beforehand, Maker certainly made the necessary adjustments.

Rather than paying deference to the threat posed by Valanciunas’ size, Maker frequently took up something of a free safety role. With a colossal advantage over his opponent in terms of speed and athleticism, Maker felt comfortable in leaving his man to provide aggressive help, safe in the knowledge that he’d still have the time to recover.

That started out simply. Maker hung back on the edge of the paint if Valanciunas moved out to the perimeter. He also accompanied him when he looked to set screens, only to then force and close space on the ball-handler while still managing to get back across into position to contest shots from the rolling big man.

As the game progressed that sense of freedom became much more apparent, though. By Maker’s second stint in the game which came to start the third quarter, he had no fear in letting Valanciunas free to help create double teams on the perimeter.

Again, Maker was able to show the speed and awareness necessary to recover after a failed trap, positioned himself as a foil straddling the line between guarding multiple opponents in the middle of the paint, and then provide help back on Valanciunas by the time the shot attempt arrived.

All of those opportunities are only in play for the 20-year-old thanks to his incredible length and lateral quickness, but he was capitalizing on the chance to unsettle a Raptors’ offense that showed no signs of adapting to exploit his own weaknesses.

By the time the Raptors eventually decided to seek out Valanciunas in the post, Maker had been allowed to settle and get the position he wanted every time down the floor. Allowing Maker to front in the post isn’t the best strategy for Valanciunas to get some more influential touches inside.

When Valanciunas came out of the game, the more mobile and rangier shooting of Serge Ibaka was able to dominate Maker, but that only underpins Toronto’s failure with their more traditional center on the court.

The Raptors could neutralize Maker’s defensive impact in future games if they’re prepared to play bursts of a post-heavy offense centered around Valanciunas, but based on Game 1 and their play in the regular season, there’s no reason to believe they’ll be willing to deviate from their guard corps’ tough shot express.

Keeping Pace With Smaller Opponents

With Maker so willing to cheat off of Valanciunas and provide help guarding smaller opponents, that exercise only becomes worthwhile if the Bucks’ youngster is able to keep up with speedy guards.

If we didn’t know this already, Saturday’s game certainly provided the answer. Not only can Maker keep pace with someone like Kyle Lowry, but he will match him pace for pace, with long arms draped all over the driver, as if he’s about to steal his soul.

There were a couple of instances of this tight coverage with DeRozan, but the most notable instance came in the third quarter as Maker was virtually glued to Lowry on his way to the rim. Not only did Maker cover the point guard so well that he wass unable to get a shot off, but blanketed by Thon’s frame passing even became a challenge for the 31-year-old All-Star.

The play in itself was a great example of what the best version of Milwaukee’s long-armed, switching offense can look like, and it’s a testament to Lowry’s abilities that he somehow managed to beat the shot clock with a heavily contested fadeaway over Khris Middleton.

For the Bucks, in this series and beyond, it’s not necessarily the three-pointers and rim running that makes Thon so exciting, but plays like this one. If he can consistently combine those offensive skills with this sort of tenacious, position-less defense, Maker could transform the way in which Milwaukee plays and become a star in his own right.

Haunting DeRozan’s Nightmares

DeMar DeRozan finished Game 1 with what looked like an impressive 27-point haul, but his knack for getting to the free throw line effectively masked the struggles he had in scoring from the field.

DeRozan finished the game having shot 7-21 from the field, and it’s remarkable just how significant Maker’s impact was on Toronto’s star wing in just 13:31 of shared floor time.

Watching the game live I felt Maker had been robbed of multiple blocks by the game’s official scorers for plays made against DeRozan, but on a second watch the decisions were good. What it’s important not to lose from that, though, is that the box score not rendering a play a block doesn’t make it any less effective in stopping an opponent from scoring.

On Saturday, Maker illustrated the trouble he can cause opposing teams with his length over and over again.

With the game less than two minutes old, DeRozan found a driving path toward the rim, but Maker stepped over to shadow him. Maker’s length denied DeRozan any real look at a shot, and the result was the Raptor just tossing the ball on to the backboard rather than in the direction of the rim.

Only seconds later, DeRozan comes at him again. With this attempt coming from the left side of the rim instead, Maker’s presence remained equally distracting, even if he didn’t have the help in boxing out Ibaka to finish the possession.

A couple of minutes later, DeRozan sizes up Tony Snell on the wing, cutting across the dribble to find space toward the basket. As he starts his drive, the oncoming Maker prevents him from attempting any kind of floater or fingertip layup attempt.

DeRozan’s goal looks to be to get across the rim for some cover from the shot block, but Maker does an excellent job of closing his space. In the end, under heavy pressure from Maker, DeRozan attempts a quick slam, and stuffs his own attempt on the rim having been denied any real room for elevation.

Although the more obvious defensive plays came from Maker in the second half, in the opening few minutes of the game he managed to sew seeds of doubt into DeRozan’s mind just by virtue of his challenges. DeRozan’s game later came to an end after an emphatic fourth quarter block from Antetokounmpo, which has to combine with Maker’s performance to ensure he’ll be listening for footsteps on every drive for the rest of the series.

The signs of that were already apparent on a third quarter drive that almost becomes even more impressive when you realize that Maker didn’t get a hand on it.

Taking a hand-off from Valanciunas, DeRozan spots a clear run to the rim with Snell somewhat caught up in a screen behind him. As DeRozan passes Snell, the Bucks guard almost resigns himself to two points before Maker rises from behind to try and pin the shot to the board. At full speed, it looks as if the big man succeeded, but in reality he didn’t make it in time.

Remarkably, it didn’t matter. Maker’s presence helped to limit the angles for DeRozan to finish on the glass, and undoubtedly unsettled the 27-year-old on a more basic psychological level too.

Rim protection is about so much more than shot blocking, and it’s a reputation that can only be earned by putting physical gifts or abilities into practice in a real game setting. At this point, you’d have to think Maker has earned Toronto’s respect.

The Long Arms of the Law

Although so much of what Maker did in defending the rim didn’t necessarily involve him blocking shots, there were still a couple of exclamation swats that helped to further energize the rookie and his team.

I’d be surprised if poor DeRozan was able to sleep after the game without feeling the force of Maker’s gigantic hands brushing by his ears, as on top of the various strong contests, the rookie stopped him with a textbook rejection in the third.

If there was one play in the game that could be pinpointed as starting to swing of all momentum and belief in Milwaukee’s favor, that might be the one. Maker’s block led to a fastbreak and-one that was sealed by Antetokounmpo down the other end. Having made the key defensive play, nobody enjoyed the resulting score as much as Maker either.

DeRozan wasn’t Maker’s only victim, either. Earlier in that third quarter, Lowry had similarly turned the corner to drive toward the rim, but this time the shot did end up pinned to the glass.

Even later in the game with the result sealed, Maker had one more. Norman Powell drove right through the middle only to meet his Maker. Thon didn’t have to over-exert himself, instead showing good verticality and virtually just finding the ball in his hands as a result.

In limited minutes, Maker turned Toronto’s offense on its head. The Raptors can certainly make adjustments, such as playing Ibaka at center more often or playing to Valanciunas’ more obvious strengths, but if they don’t there remains room for the Bucks to use the rookie big man to even greater effect.

Next: Win In 6 Podcast #112: Bucks Leave Game 1 In Jurassic Park More Alive Than Ever

In a series where the Bucks need meaningful contributions from a host of role players, Thon Maker shaped the outcome of Game 1. The only question now is whether he can keep it up.