Milwaukee Bucks: Can Coach Bud come up with a plan to nullify Al Horford?

No opposing player holds a bigger influence in the outcome of the Milwaukee Bucks’ playoff rematch with the Boston Celtics than center Al Horford. So how can head coach Mike Budenholzer and co. neutralize his impact in this series?

The Milwaukee Bucks’ matchup with the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals is set to reheat some of the intensity and animosity we got a peek of only a year ago.

While a number of faces and names have changed for the Milwaukee side over the year, including at the head coaching position with Mike Budenholzer, there’s a sense of unfinished business on the Bucks’ part after the Celtics managed to take last year’s first round series in seven games.

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On the other side, Boston will have key contributors in the starting lineup and off the bench that they didn’t have during last year’s tango in the form of Gordon Hayward and Kyrie Irving.

But for as much as the Celtics’ stars between Hayward, Irving, and to a much lesser extent Jayson Tatum, will likely garner the most attention in terms of projecting X-factors in this series, the Celtics’ success hinges on the play of their veteran versatile center in Al Horford.

Throughout all of the NBA, there may not be one player who carries the requisite skills, the savviness and the size to make life difficult for the Bucks on both ends of the floor like Horford is able to do (Philadelphia 76ers All-Star center Joel Embiid is a very close second, save for his three-point shooting stagnation).

Whether it was during last year’s playoff series or in the three regular season contests the Bucks and Celtics had last season, Horford has regularly checked superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo to only then be able to pick-and-pop from three on the other side of the court in one sequence.

Regarding the former, Horford limited Antetokounmpo to just 16 points, though on 7-of-14 shooting from the field, in the 41 possessions he was matched up on the three-time All-Star in their season series this year, per NBA.com/stats.

Likewise, Horford launched a career-high 11 three-point tries in the Celtics’ lone win against the Bucks in the regular season back on November 1 of last year, which stood as the Bucks’ first loss of the regular season. However, it’s worth noting the former Gator only connected on four of those attempts in the four-point victory and shot 6-of-17 from three in his two appearances against the Bucks this season (35.3 percent).

Of course, there may be nobody who knows Horford’s capabilities better than Budenholzer after having coached the 32-year-old for three seasons during their respective stints with the Atlanta Hawks. With that in mind, is there a specific blueprint Coach Bud and his staff may look to utilize to either limit or throw Horford out of his comfort zone over the duration of the series?

Offensively, it may be as simple as asking Horford to launch multiple looks more than he’s normally used to and taking the ball out of the hands of the Celtics’ more willing three-point shooters.

Horford’s shooting came back down to earth after a career campaign last year, though that still topped out to 36 percent on 203 attempts during the regular season. Yet the Dominican Republic international struggled to find the bottom of the net in the Celtics’ first round win over the Indiana Pacers as he connected on 31 percent of his 16 three-point attempts during the four-game series.

The Bucks under Budenholzer have shown time and time again this season that they’re willing to surrender certain areas of the floor to stick to the defensive scheme that helped them become the league-leading defensive unit during the regular season. That isn’t to say certain tweaks won’t be made before and during the second round, but it may be as much as forcing Horford to fire away away from his favored spots beyond the arc.

Defensively, it’s a little more complicated, especially as it relates to Horford’s ability to key in on Antetokounmpo. It won’t entirely fall on Horford’s shoulders to limit the MVP frontrunner as it literally takes an entire five-man unit to prevent Antetokounmpo from streaking down the floor to the basket with ease. And some Celtics players may have shown their hand in terms of how they’ll look to hinder Antetokounmpo’s impact.

Although it’s certainly possible that it could occur in a game or two, it’s hard to imagine Horford falling into foul trouble as he’s generally been as immaculate as it comes in that regard, considering he’s averaging 2.3 fouls per 36 minutes this season.

It certainly won’t be easy to stifle someone as poised and measured as Horford is in any facet of his game, but the Bucks will certainly search for anything to throw the five-time All-Star center off kilter, and the Celtics as a whole.