The best defense
The Bucks’ identity lies on the defensive side of the ball, and certainly has done ever since the arrival of head coach Mike Budenholzer. It’s the type of performance the Bucks collectively crafted on that end of the floor Friday night that shows why they stand atop the NBA in defensive efficiency after last night’s win.
Save for a few stretches when the Clippers were able to hit shots and lean on their stars such as Kawhi Leonard to drive the offense, the Bucks completely swarmed LA with their heady, intricate coverages, and the tactics that Budenholzer threw their way to stall the Clippers’ defense for the night.
That resulted in a Clippers offense that entered the night sixth in offensive efficiency only hitting 35.1 percent of their 94 field goal attempts, and going 8-of-32 from three-point range, which ranks as their worst shooting performance of the season, unsurprisingly.
That left the Clippers with an 85.0 offensive rating for the night, the worst mark for them this season in that department. By comparison, that number is the second-best defensive rating the Bucks have compiled this season as the 80.6 points per 100 possessions they surrendered to the Indiana Pacers back on November 16 ranks better.
As if that wasn’t enough, the Clippers tilted the game even more toward the Bucks’ favor with the amount of turnovers they accrued throughout the night, which ended up totaling 21 miscues. That mark produced the highest opponent turnover ratio the Bucks have had this season and they feasted on the Clippers’ mistakes to gain 29 points off of their 21 turnovers, which is now the gold standard for Milwaukee in that area of the game.
There was no shortage of defensive standouts, ranging from Donte DiVincenzo to Brook Lopez to Wes Matthews, just to name a few. But the Bucks’ collective cohesion stood out among everything else and it goes to show just how many gears the Bucks can hit on that side of the floor.