After much anticipation, the Milwaukee Bucks‘ clash with the Brooklyn Nets is officially set for the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The meeting was set after the Nets took care of business and put the finishing touches on their first round series with the Boston Celtics following their 123-109 Game 5 victory. That came days after the Bucks swept the Miami Heat in their first round series to become the first team to advance to the Conference Semifinals.
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Although the Bucks are showing us all why they’re different this playoff run, their greatest playoff test of the Mike Budenholzer era comes with this matchup against the loaded Nets.
So without further ado, let’s explore some of the biggest takeaways that emerged from the Milwaukee Bucks’ season series with the Brooklyn Nets.
Giannis Antetokounmpo stuffed the scoring sheet in the Milwaukee Bucks’ season series with the Nets
To say that Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo was front and center of their season series with Brooklyn would be an understatement.
In the three games that Antetokounmpo and the Bucks faced off against the Nets, the reigning MVP averaged 39.7 points on 45-of-92 shooting from the field (10-for-26 from 3-point range, 19-for-26 from the foul line). Antetokounmpo added in 10.7 rebounds and 5 assists to go along with that gaudy scoring line. That was the highest scoring mark Antetokounmpo averaged against an Eastern Conference opponent this regular season.
That was certainly helped by the fact that Antetokounmpo set his season-high 49-point performance in the Bucks thrilling 117-114 win over the Nets last month. Not only was Antetokounmpo unstoppable in getting to the rim like always, he also matched his season-high of four triples in that marquee matinee.
Of course, it seemed as though this was all by the Nets’ design. In each of the Bucks’ meetings with the Nets, Brooklyn tasked the likes of DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin to slow down Antetokounmpo and without sending help to form that wall that has trapped Antetokounmpo historically.
In fact, nobody logged more possessions primarily defending Antetokounmpo this season than the Nets’ big man duo.
Per NBA.com/stats, Antetokounmpo scored 50 total points on 20-for-44 shooting (5-for-12 from downtown, 5-for-7 from the free throw line) across the 72.4 partial possessions that he and Jordan were matched up against each other. Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo scored 35 total points on 13-for-35 shooting from the field (5-for-16 from three, 4-for-7 from the free throw line), eight assists and seven turnovers across the 67 partial possessions he matched up against Griffin.
Brooklyn made a point of letting Antetokounmpo get his as well as get comfortable from the very areas that has long been his weakness. Whether they’ll continue adhering to that ploy remains to be seen now with this series set to tip off this weekend, but Antetokounmpo will need plenty of help, even as he could have similar field days against Brooklyn.
The Milwaukee Bucks didn’t meet up against the Nets’ ‘Big 3’ during the regular season
The Bucks were far from the only team that didn’t get to meet against the Nets’ star-studded trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving.
The Nets’ ‘Big 3’ registered 202 total minutes together during the regular season as injuries and absences affected all three of Durant, Harden and Irving. That was the case in the three games between the Bucks and the Nets as Irving missed Harden’s Nets debut in a 125-123 win over Milwaukee back on January 18 earlier this year. Harden then missed the Bucks’ pair of wins over Brooklyn last month as he recovered from a strained hamstring.
With all three now finally healthy, they’re well on their way of eclipsing the slim minutes mark they accumulated together.
Over the Nets’ series with the Celtics, Brooklyn outscored Boston by +23.1 points per 100 possessions in the 130 minutes that all three of Durant, Harden and Irving were on the floor together in the first round.
Clearly, the Bucks have never gone up against a team that has assembled this kind of offensive talent like the Nets have throughout their past playoff run in the Mike Budenholzer era. Not many have beyond Milwaukee, to be completely fair.
The many great challenges that will come the Bucks’ way in trying to defend the Nets’ leading trio will be paramount in somehow sneaking past the Nets in order to reach the Eastern Conference Finals for the second time in three years.
Milwaukee Bucks relied on self-created shots in season series against the Nets
While Brooklyn is laden with some of the most gifted shot creators and scorers standing in the game today, the Bucks showed they were capable of going to toe-to-toe in similar fashion.
The Bucks’ season series with the Nets was the best indication of that as Milwaukee primarily relied on one-on-one situations as a way to match Brooklyn’s firepower. No team averaged more points on pull up shots against the Nets this season than the Bucks did (38) and the Bucks logged the fewest touches per game (366.3) of any opponent the Nets played against over the regular season. The same goes for averaging the fewest passes (238) of any Nets opponent this season.
Furthermore, the Bucks averaged 21 assists against the Nets, the fifth-fewest mark they averaged against any opponent this season. On the bright side, they only averaged 9.7 turnovers per game in their season series with the Nets.
Of course, some of this goes to how the Nets defended Antetokounmpo and were willing to gamble on the Bucks’ supporting players to beat them. But it also goes to the improved talent and offense the Bucks have been this season with their many additions, all of which is headlined by the likes of Jrue Holiday, Bryn Forbes and Bobby Portis. As well as the steady shotmaking of Khris Middleton.
We’ll just have to see whether the Bucks can continue to yield similar results to what they showed scoring against the Nets throughout their season series with one another.
Milwaukee Bucks’ depth struggled in season series against Brooklyn Nets
Last but certainly not least, the Bucks’ bench unit was not a point of strength in their season series with Brooklyn.
In fact, the Bucks’ second unit averaged the fewest points per game (21) of any reserve unit the Nets faced up against throughout the regular season. That mark was certainly propped up by the 14-point and 12-point showing that Bryn Forbes put together in the Bucks’ pair of wins over the Nets during the regular season and he was responsible for 30 of the Bucks’ 61 total bench points over the three games with one another.
This certainly goes hand-in-hand with the top-heavy nature of the Bucks’ roster, but it’s doesn’t quell the concerns over their supporting cast beyond the Bucks’ ‘Big 3’ of Antetokounmpo, Holiday and Middleton.
And that tissue is even more relevant in light of the Bucks recently losing Donte DiVincenzo for the rest of the season after he suffered a foot injury midway through Milwaukee’s sweep over the Heat.
While we saw Budenholzer turn to Pat Connaughton to fill the void left by DiVincenzo in the Bucks’ starting lineup for Game 4 against Miami, we’ll just have to see whether that remains going into this series with the Nets. But it’s not like the Bucks are picking from a robust bench unit in terms of scoring the ball outside of a couple of key exceptions.
If the Bucks’ season series with the Nets was any indication, we’re all in for what could end up being an all-timer as both prepare for their Eastern Conference Semifinals series with one another.