Milwaukee Bucks: 3 things to watch for against the New York Knicks

How will the New York Knicks take to defending Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks?

With a player as great as the Greek Freak, teams will have different ideas on how to try to stop him. To have the best chance to slow Antetokounmpo down, you need an elite big man defender and strong wings to help.

The Miami Heat have always defended Giannis the best out of any team because they have the exact personnel needed. The Knicks, on the other hand, do not have such personnel to make life as difficult. Mitchell Robinson is a great shot blocker and help defender, but he is too slow on his feet to defend Giannis one-on-one all game. Randle has the foot speed, but he doesn’t have the size or strength needed to slow the two-time MVP down.

The most likely strategy the Knicks will use is swarming Antetokounmpo whenever he gets the ball in the paint. This strategy makes sense in theory, but the MVP has improved so much as a playmaker that he always seems to find the open man in these scenarios, as opposed to 2019 against Toronto when he just tried to bulldoze through the wall. Now he will kick it out to guys on the perimeter like Allen, Nwora, or Connaughton for a 3-pointer.

Antetokounmpo has also improved as an outside shooter this year, as he is shooting 1.6 percent better than last year on 1.2 more attempts per game. All this to say, there is not a correct answer to defend Antetokounmpo. You can only hope he has an off night or gets into foul trouble. There have been many different strategies used, though, and it will be interesting to see which one the Knicks choose to utilize in slowing him down. Tim Thibodeau, New York’s head coach, has been known for his defense over the years, and he will be put to the test tonight against the reigning NBA Finals MVP and company.

It should be a great matchup between a pair of Eastern Conference playoff contenders, and you can watch it tonight at 6:30 p.m. CST.