Milwaukee Bucks: 3 keys to victory against star-studded Brooklyn Nets

Second key – Jrue Holiday sets the tone on both ends of the floor

It’s certainly early on in his Bucks tenure, but tonight will certainly the biggest game in Jrue Holiday’s growing stint in Milwaukee. Well, at least until Thursday night when the Bucks host the reigning NBA champions, the Los Angeles Lakers.

Holiday is at the center of how the Bucks will go about trying to stop the Nets defensively as Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer has quite the choice on his hands as to who to assign Holiday to within the Nets’ star-studded backcourt. Holiday’s size, strength and activity will be critical in disrupting either both Harden and Irving from getting a rhythm and that’s without factoring in the big question of handling Durant, who’s been on a tear to start the season.

On the other side of the ball, Holiday’s poise and ability to control and direct the Bucks’ offense will be critical in handling their overall tempo, along with continuing to score at such an efficient rate from all levels of the floor.

So much of the curiosity for this Bucks season will come in big games such as this one and how they will hold up to elite competition. With Holiday being the biggest fundamental addition they made in an offseason full of them, he will have the chance to show why this isn’t the same Bucks teams that have struggled to match up against elite opponents (more so in the postseason).

While Budenholzer faces no shortage of tactical questions going into the Bucks’ first meeting with the Nets, Holiday could be the answer he seeks to many of those questions and it wouldn’t be a bad time to put in his best performance of the season.