Milwaukee Bucks: 3 takeaways from 128-112 loss to Dallas Mavericks

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 08: (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 08: (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
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Milwaukee Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA – AUGUST 02:(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

For the second time in two days since opening up their preseason slate, the Milwaukee Bucks lost 128-112 versus the Dallas Mavericks Monday night.

It was another eventful night for the Milwaukee Bucks as they hosted the Dallas Mavericks for the second consecutive game in Fiserv Forum this preseason.

After 48 minutes of action passed, Dallas walked away with the 128-112 victory over Milwaukee, having won both matchups against the Bucks. Game one created some interesting storylines, and here are three more that came to light following Monday night’s game.

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Takeaway No. 3 – It was a struggle filled night for Antetokounmpo from the line

Giannis Antetokounmpo had another great game for the Bucks, having finished with 24 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, and three blocks in 27 minutes.

While the Greek Freak stuffed the stat sheet, he had an all too familiar troublesome night from the free-throw line to go along with it. Antetokounmpo went an abysmal 1-for-7 from the charity stripe as he was unable to find any rhythm from the line.

Improving his subpar free-throw shooting was a point of emphasis for Antetokounmpo this offseason, and in Milwaukee’s first preseason game, it appeared he had tweaked his form. The switch proved impactful in Saturday’s matchup with Dallas, Giannis shot 6-for-7 from the line.  When asked about the adjustment after the loss on Saturday, Antetokounmpo responded with this:

"“No. There’s nothing different. I try not to think about it. Obviously, like a month and a half ago, yeah, I changed something, but now it’s in the past. I’m not thinking about this is how I shoot free throws right now. This is how I shoot the ball right now.”"

During his first two games of the preseason, Antetokounmpo’s free-throw shooting has been on complete opposite sides of the spectrum. Hopefully, he can work out the kinks and see that percentage from the line trend upwards as the season progresses.