Milwaukee Bucks: Ultimate preview for playoff matchup with Miami Heat
By Dalton Sell
Keys for the Milwaukee Bucks to defeat the Miami Heat in the NBA Playoffs
The most significant difference between these two teams in last year’s postseason was the massive difference in 3-point shooting.
Milwaukee struggled to find any rhythm from long range as they shot just 32.7 percent from behind the arc throughout five games. With Miami perfectly building a wall down low to prevent Giannis Antetokounmpo from penetrating the paint and getting easy baskets, the lack of shooting from the perimeter doomed the Bucks as their offense went stagnant.
The Bucks spent substantially this offseason to shore up their shooting efforts from the outside, and it has paid off as they are tied for the fourth-highest percentage in the league at 38.9 percent. Translating that floor spacing over into the playoffs will be critical and two players that should look to make an immediate impact are Bryn Forbes and Bobby Portis. These two ranked third and fourth in 3-point percentage this season among NBA players this season and that shooting will prove pivotal in the playoffs.
Milwaukee’s defensive efforts on the perimeter will also be a key factor in the game plan heading into the rematch. Miami shot 37.3 percent from three during the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals last season, which proved troublesome for the Bucks as they had no answer whatsoever to slow down the bombardment from the perimeter. With Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and even Butler still in the fold, the Bucks must emphasize slowing down Miami’s lethal shooters or they could be doomed to suffer the same fate as last year.