Milwaukee Bucks: The formula for defending James Harden

But did it really work?

James Harden still put up big numbers against Milwaukee, averaging 32.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists over the two games against the Bucks.

So, were the Bucks really all that successful in slowing him down by forcing him right?

While the two-game sample size is small, the answer, for the most part, is yes.

Mohammad Dakhil of The Washington Post explains it well here in this excerpt from his article:

"[The Bucks forced Harden right] a total of 100 times out of 124 Harden possessions over the two games, both wins for Milwaukee, and limited Harden to 0.9 points per possession in those instances. During [the second matchup] they forced Harden right on 47 of 49 possessions, holding Harden to 0.7 points per possession for the night. He averages 1.1 points per possession in 2018-19."

So while James Harden still put up numbers, the Bucks were able to slow him down consistently over the two-game sample while coming away with the victory in both matchups.

In the first game, which happened to be the closer of the two matchups, Harden put up shooting percentages very close to his season average and scored 42 points but also had nine turnovers which, in addition to going cold from three down the stretch, effectively cost Houston the game.

It was in this game that the Bucks initially tested the strategy, with Eric Bledsoe improvising on the fly and his teammates following his example. In this initial matchup, the Bucks forced Harden right on 70.7 percent of the possible possessions and won the game by seven points with Harden being just a +2 plus/minus for the night.

In the second game, Harden scored just 23 points on 9-of-26 shooting. He also had seven assists and four turnovers.

In this matchup, the Bucks were much more comfortable running this defensive scheme, forcing James Harden right on 95.9 percent of the possible possessions. They won this game by 14 points while Harden was a -14 plus/minus.

Overall, across the two contests, the Bucks held Harden to an offensive rating of just 98.8, which is 17.4 points per 100 possessions below his season average offensive rating of 116.2.

Similarly, Harden had a net rating of -7.0 across both contests, which is 13.4 points per 100 possessions below his season average net rating of 6.4.

So while the sample is just two games, all evidence suggests that the Bucks could replicate this strategy again with success should they meet the Rockets again in the NBA Finals in June.