Milwaukee Bucks: 3 takeaways from 110-88 Game 4 loss to Atlanta Hawks

The Milwaukee Bucks‘ eventful playoff run made its latest and most heartbreaking turn after their 110-88 Game 4 loss to the Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night at State Farm Arena.

It was a game in which the Hawks led from the opening tip and managed to keep the Bucks at an arm’s length all throughout as Milwaukee struggled to put together a competitive performance and make the Hawks team sweat, even without star guard Trae Young.

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Of course, that ended up being far from the Bucks’ biggest problem by the end of the night and now, they have to regroup with the series knotted up at 2-2 and going back to Milwaukee for Game 5.

So without further ado, let’s dive into the biggest takeaways from the Milwaukee Bucks’ Game 4 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

Milwaukee Bucks lose superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo in Game 4 loss to Hawks

Injury was added to the Bucks’ insulting Game 4 loss to the Hawks when Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo went down with a knee injury midway through the third quarter.

Trying to make a play on an alley-oop dunk by Clint Capela, Antetokounmpo crumbled to a heap after a hyperextended his left knee, the same leg that he had calf tightness in throughout this series so far. Antetokounmpo immediately clutched his knee and writhed in pain before getting up and eventually walking off the court largely under his own power.

With a couple of trips back to the locker room and a brief cameo near the bench, Antetokounmpo was subsequently ruled out for the rest of the game and ESPN’s Malika Andrews reported after the game that Antetokounmpo will get an MRI Wednesday.

At this point, saying Antetokounmpo’s injury changes the complexion of this series is an understatement. This very well could be the end of the two-time MVP’s season and the Bucks have to live with the possible reality that they will be without Antetokounmpo as they continue to fight for their playoff lives and book a trip to the NBA Finals.

Time will tell just what the official status of Antetokounmpo’s injury will be, but being without the very player that has made everything possible for the Bucks at this moment is quite the setback to overcome.

Atlanta Hawks soldier on without Trae Young in Milwaukee Bucks’ Game 4 loss

Of course, the Hawks know what it’s like to be without your leading superstar as they entered Game 4 without Trae Young, who was sidelined with a bone bruise in his ankle injury suffered during Game 3.

While it wasn’t seamless, the Hawks were able to forge on without the All-Star guard as they completely controlled the game from wire-to-wire.

Hawks head coach Nate McMillian turned to Lou Williams to act as Young’s replacement in the starting lineup and he delivered. The three-time Sixth Man of the Year winner posted a game-high 21 points on nine shots (2-for-3 from long distance, 5-for-6 from the free throw line), eight assists and five rebounds in 35 minutes of run.

In total, the Hawks finished with six players in double figures and shot a reasonable 13-for-38 from 3-point range on the night, good for 34.8 percent. It wasn’t always crisp, but the Hawks’ offense got humming just enough to really even up the series, especially in comparison to how the Bucks operated on that end of the floor.

Like Antetokounmpo, time will tell what Young’s status will be going into Game 5 and McMillian’s comments after the game were far from encouraging.

Working in the Hawks’ favor, though, is being able to play without Young and that certainly is quite the difference between the two sides at this point in the series.

Milwaukee Bucks’ supporting stars Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton struggle in Game 4 loss

Well before the Bucks had lost Antetokounmpo to his knee injury, the Bucks were stuck in mud and that certainly didn’t improve after losing Antetokounmpo.

The Bucks unsurprisingly finished with their worst offensive performance of the series as they finished with a 94.6 offensive rating, per NBA.com/stats. While they weren’t the only ones to blame for such a porous showing, the Bucks’ best perimeter players, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton, both struggled to take and steer the Bucks’ offensive reins in any positive way.

Holiday led the way for the Bucks with 19 points while Middleton had 16 points and they both finished with the game on 6-for-17 shooting and went a combined 2-for-14 from long range, with Holiday supplying both triples. They also combined to supply for half of the Bucks’ 16 turnovers on the night, which only exacerbated Milwaukee’s struggles to execute offensively.

Again, the Bucks’ offensive woes didn’t just fall on either Holiday and Middleton’s shoulders. The Bucks as a whole struggled to hit shots and went 8-for-39 from 3-point range (20.5 percent), which continues the shoddy shooting they’ve had all playoffs long.

However, with the likely absence of Antetokounmpo coming, the Bucks desperately need both of Holiday and Middleton to get into gear and set the tone for a massive Game 5 back in Milwaukee. Considering the ups and downs they’ve gone through this series, they have to show some semblance of consistency, especially as their season will soon be on the line with how long this series has gone on.

Game 5 of the Bucks’ Conference Finals series with the Atlanta Hawks will shift back to Milwaukee Thursday night at Fiserv Forum and you can catch the action on TNT where it is slated to tip off at 7:30 P.M. CST.