Milwaukee Bucks Preview: Game 6 vs Toronto Raptors

Player To Watch: Norman Powell

Norman Powell is playing how Khris Middleton should be at the moment. Powell is a tough defender with long arms and the foot quickness to stay in front of his man on that end, and his offensive contributions are crucial to the Raptors as well.

Powell is a typical three-and-d player, but he’s made a lot of noise with some loud dunks all over Milwaukee as well. All credit to Powell for making the necessary plays to get those looks, but the spacing that came with removing Valanciunas makes life much easier for the rest of the Raptors.

Forcing either Thon or Moose to chase around Serge for much of the game removes a rim protector (or charge taker, in Monroe’s case) from the painted area, meaning all a Raptor has to do to get to the rim is shake his man for a quick second.

With the Bucks aggressive, swarming defense, that isn’t all that difficult. Smart passing can lead to the Bucks losing sight of one of the Raptors, and that instant is all that’s necessary for Milwaukee to give up an easy bucket.

Strategery aside, Powell is playing very well, especially lately. He put up 25 points, four rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block on eight-for-11 field goal shooting, four-for-four three-point shooting and five-for-five free throw shooting in Game 5. Milwaukee will need to contain him better to have a chance to bounce back on Thursday.