Milwaukee Bucks: Wesley Matthews’ defensive importance only grows
Veteran Milwaukee Bucks wing Wesley Matthews’ role and contributions can easily fall through the cracks, but that’s been far from the case in Orlando.
The Milwaukee Bucks have certainly faced their fair share of tests to open up their account in Orlando. For veteran Bucks wing Wesley Matthews, he’s been at the center of those tests so far through two games.
All season long, Matthews has been ready to take on many of the high-profile defensive assignments that have been a prevalent theme throughout his 11-year NBA career. And by doing so, Matthews has re-established himself as one of the finest 3-and-D wings in the NBA, and within the league’s best defensive unit under head coach Mike Budenholzer.
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That certainly hasn’t let up in the Bucks’ opening pair of games against the Boston Celtics and the Houston Rockets in Orlando, as Matthews has taken on assignments guarding premier scorers such as Jayson Tatum and James Harden.
Even after such a long layoff, Matthews hasn’t missed a beat in being able to shadow the likes of Tatum and Harden in the very physical and tenacious way he attacks that end of the floor.
After all, Matthews was incredibly instrumental in being able to bother Tatum into having the poor showing he did in the Bucks’ win Friday night. Per NBA.com/stats, in the five-and-a-half minutes Matthews matched up on Tatum, the Celtics All-Star forward forced just two points on 1-of-3 shooting from the field (0-for-1 from three) and Tatum ended up finishing with five points on 2-for-18 shooting (0-for-4 from deep).
Matthews wasn’t as successful in slowing down Harden Sunday night, at least to the degree he did to Tatum, and Matthews’ five fouls had limited him to 26 minutes and 41 seconds on the court. With that said, Harden finished with 24 points on 5-for-14 shooting (3-of-12 from three, 11-of-13 from downtown), and Matthews was needed even more to check the NBA’s scoring leader with the absence of starting point guard Eric Bledsoe.
In the six minutes and 16 seconds he spent guarding Harden Sunday night, Matthews limited Harden down 13 points on 3-of-8 shooting (2-for-7 from deep, 5-for-6 from the line) while picking up three of his fouls for the night.
Being the lockdown defender that he continues to be, Matthews has the lowest defensive rating of any Bucks player through their first two games back so far. And the disparity in the Bucks’ performance with and without Matthews on the floor has been eye-popping.
To that end, Matthews has been a +26 through 53 minutes so far in Orlando. When Matthews is on the sidelines, the Bucks have been outscored by 23 points in 43 minutes. Plenty of that can be explained by the fact that most of Matthews’ minutes come with most, if not all of the Bucks’ core players on the court such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez, and Khris Middleton.
Still, the former Golden Eagle’s defensive fit alongside those star pieces has directly helped to inform the types of seasons that Antetokounmpo and Middleton, in particular, had been enjoying before the break. By expelling the amount of energy and relishing the role of taking on such big matchups, Matthews has made it easier for the Bucks’ All-Stars to take on more freedom in their work on the offensive end and the Bucks certainly haven’t missed a beat in doing so.
That will certainly continue in the seeding games the Bucks have remaining and against some of the challengers they may have to go through in the East in order to reach the NBA Finals. To that point, three of the next four Bucks games will likely see Matthews take on assignments such as Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat, Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks and/or Fred VanVleet of the Toronto Raptors.
Even as Matthews’ shooting remains streaky as he’s scored nine total points on 3-for-12 shooting from downtown while in Orlando, his defensive standing remains sound and secure.
dark. Next. Speculation and scrutiny awaits going into restart
Again, it’s easy for Matthews’ unheralded services to go unnoticed and he’s kept to his simplified 3-and-D role this season more than ever. But that in and of itself comes with great responsibility and the Bucks have greatly benefited by the way in which Matthews has not just embraced that opportunity, but delivered in defending such high-profile assignments in the consistent manner he has.