Milwaukee Bucks: 3 advantages in playoff matchup with Brooklyn Nets

The second round series between the Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets is shaping up to be the best matchup we’ve seen yet in these NBA Playoffs.

Before these two teams square off in a highly-anticipated Game 1 this coming Saturday, it is clear to decipher some of the advantages and disadvantages for both clubs. For one, the Bucks will find themselves in unfamiliar territory as this will be the first playoff series since 2018 where they do not have homecourt advantage working in their favor.

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Although last year’s run in the NBA’s Orlando bubble might not have accurately represented homecourt like playing in Fiserv Forum does, this is the first time in a long time that the Bucks will open a playoff series as the road team.

It will certainly be something to monitor as the first two games in this series will occur in Brooklyn. While that could stand as a disadvantage, let us look on the bright side and pick out three advantages working for Milwaukee.

The Milwaukee Bucks have more head coaching experience than the Brooklyn Nets

The difference in head coaching experience between Milwaukee and Brooklyn could not be further apart on the spectrum.

After serving as an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs for 17 seasons, Mike Budenholzer has been head coaching since 2013. With 637 regular season games under his belt, the two-time Coach of the Year winner has put together a 375-262 overall record with the Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks. However, the playoffs are certainly far tighter for Budenholzer as he has just a 36-32 record over 68 total contests. Budenholzer has been subject to criticism for his postseason blunders in the past, and rightfully so, but he is no stranger to the big stage.

Meanwhile, Nets head coach Steve Nash is on the opposite side with experience. While the former two-time league MVP and 18-year NBA veteran is no stranger to the game, this is his first coaching gig in the association. Yet, he had a solid first year in Brooklyn by posting a 48-24 record in the regular season, good enough for second in the Eastern Conference standings. Nash and the Nets also opened the playoffs with a solid series in a 4-1 gentleman’s sweep of the depleted Boston Celtics.

Nash and Budenholzer will now find themselves in a chess match against one another in these Eastern Conference Semifinals. While the talent on the floor between both clubs will be a deciding factor in this series, the disparity in experience here could play a massive factor. For reference, the New York Post’s Mike Vaccaro recently pointed out an interesting sequence from Nash when the Bucks and Nets squared off earlier this season:

"“But it is also important to remember games like this, when Nash all but had his lunch money stolen by Milwaukee’s Mike Budenholzer. Most glaring was the way he meekly allowed the Bucks to steamroll his team with an 18-1 run that turned a 103-97 Nets lead with 10 minutes to play into a 115-104 Bucks advantage in just over four minutes of tortured, torturous, one-sided basketball.”"

Nash himself admitted after the Brooklyn loss that he could have done something different such as call a timeout as the Bucks made their dominant comeback. However, Vaccaro writes how Nash wanted to save his timeouts for the end of the game, only to have two left at his disposal when the final buzzer rang.

Sure, this little lapse means relatively little with the postseason wiping the slate clean, but it will be interesting to see what Budenholzer has in store for the first-year head coach. He surprisingly outdueled Heat coach Erik Spoelstra in the first round, and time will tell if he has any more tricks up his sleeve.

The Milwaukee Bucks boast a better defense than the Brooklyn Nets

Setting the tone from the opening tip, the Bucks were dominant on the defensive end throughout their sweep of the Miami Heat in the first round.

According to NBA.com/stats, Milwaukee currently possesses the best defensive rating in the playoffs with a mark of 95.4 over four games. For reference, the team closest to the Bucks in that department is the Phoenix Suns with a 101 defensive rating, and that massive disparity between the two is certainly worth noting. They also surrendered just 98 points to the Heat per game, the second-fewest mark in the league to this point.

Although it is a small sample size, the Bucks were a force to be reckoned with on the defensive side of the ball in round one, and they will need those efforts to continue against the Nets. This Brooklyn team can score the basketball prolifically, as they showcased during the regular season by finishing second in points per game with 118.6. If the Bucks will win this matchup, it will almost certainly be because of their defensive efforts to keep this high-scoring Brooklyn team in check.

Headed by the reigning Defensive Player of the Year Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez, and P.J. Tucker, among others, this team has transformed into something special on that side of the ball with the team adapting new defensive schemes. Although the disheartening loss of starting shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo for the remainder of the postseason hurts the team’s defense, the Bucks can still match up well against the Nets.

Meanwhile, it will be interesting to see what the Nets have in store for the Bucks on the defensive end. The only team to score more points on average than them during the regular season was indeed Milwaukee, as this team thrived on the offensive end courtesy of their reshaped roster. Brooklyn has posted the ninth-ranked defensive rating in the playoffs thus far at 115.9 in their five games versus Boston, and it will be compelling to see how they combat their attack against Milwaukee.

All three regular season matchups were closely contested contests as every game finished with a point differential of six points or fewer. Yet, the Bucks have the better defense in this matchup and they must take advantage of it to win this series.

The Milwaukee Bucks have more team chemistry than the Brooklyn Nets

Both Milwaukee and Brooklyn have stars on their roster, but there is certainly a difference in the playing time registered between the best players.

For instance, Brooklyn’s leading trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden shared the court for just eight regular season games this year. Logging a total of 202 minutes together, this three-man wrecking crew did not have much experience playing together as they entered the playoffs. However, it did not seem to matter much in their dismantling of the Celtics, as these three put on a show with their prolific scoring.

When you throw that much top-tier talent into a blender, precisely how much chemistry they need to have together is certainly a question that popped up throughout the regular season. Although they seemingly answered that during their series with Boston, it will be interesting to see whether they can replicate that same success against this Bucks team.

On the other hand, Milwaukee spent the entire regular season building chemistry after persistently retooling the roster with talent. In addition to the returning duo of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton, the Bucks have spent handsomely over the past several months to bring household names like Jrue Holiday, P.J. Tucker, Bryn Forbes, and Bobby Portis, among others, into the fold to round out this roster.

Although the regular season was a turbulent ride as the team got off to a rather rough start in trying to conjure chemistry amongst one another, they managed to put the pieces together and close the year strong. As evidenced by their demolition of the Heat in round one, this team looked like they were playing their best basketball of the season on both ends of the floor, and that chemistry with one another could be key in this matchup with the Nets.

Yet, this will be a new situation for both teams as the Bucks and Nets did not square off during the regular season with Brooklyn’s trio all on the floor. Irving missed the first game in January, and Harden missed the ladder two in May with injury. So, although Milwaukee handled the season series 2-1, it will be a new set of circumstances this time around.

While they looked stellar in the first round, time will tell if Brooklyn’s lack of chemistry between their leading trio comes back to haunt them.