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Milwaukee Bucks: 3 potential adjustments ahead of Game 2 with the Boston Celtics

By Adam McGee

MILWAUKEE, WI - APRIL 28: Head Coach Mike Budenholzer of the Milwaukee Bucks talks at the press conference after Game One of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals of the 2019 NBA Playoffs against the Boston Celtics on April 28, 2019 at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WI - APRIL 28: Head Coach Mike Budenholzer of the Milwaukee Bucks talks at the press conference after Game One of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals of the 2019 NBA Playoffs against the Boston Celtics on April 28, 2019 at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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MILWAUKEE, WI – APRIL 28: (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WI – APRIL 28: (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Mega Bucks

If the Bucks have had something special up their sleeve throughout the regular season that they’ve been saving for the playoffs, it may well be the oversized lineups that they’ve ran out sparingly, but with great success.

If Milwaukee’s roster boasts any particular trait, it’s an abundance of size accompanied by exceptional versatility.

Injuries forced Budenholzer’s hand in starting a lineup of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Mirotic, Ersan Ilyasova and Brook Lopez against the Utah Jazz back at the beginning of March, but the results were overwhelmingly positive and perhaps hinted at a greater strategic possibility.

Describing the minutes that lineup played in that game to Sports Illustrated’s Chris Ballard, Budenholzer noted:

"“It was f—— beautiful! I just love that we can go so many different directions.”"

One such variation of that direction arrived in the three-minute spurt that gave way to a 15-0 Bucks run in Game 1, when Hill, Middleton, Mirotic, Ilyasova and Lopez tore through the Celtics.

The Bucks’ roster provides enough scope for slight changes in personnel involved, but when Budenholzer has ever so briefly turned to apparently oversized lineups this season, the results have been striking.

Tuesday night may mark a good time for him to start employing that strategy even more frequently.

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