Milwaukee Bucks: 3 takeaways from brutal 113-98 loss to New York Knicks
By Dalton Sell
The Milwaukee Bucks miss Brook Lopez, plain and simple
Brook Lopez has appeared in just one game this season as he endures nagging back soreness, and the Bucks have missed him dearly. They have tried to compensate for the loss by piecing together more lineups with Giannis Antetokounmpo at center, and although the Greek Freak is a dominant force of nature, he does not bring that same stature at the position as Lopez.
For proof, look no further than the rebounding differential against the Knicks. New York won the battle of the boards convincingly with a 71-43 difference, owning Milwaukee. The Knicks grabbed an eye-popping 20 offensive rebounds, which allowed them to put 20 extra second-chance points on the scoreboard. On the other hand, the Bucks would grab just seven offensive rebounds for five second-chance points. Nerlens Noel and Julius Randle simply manhandled the Bucks on the glass, something that would not happen with Lopez in the fold.
Lopez would have also made a massive difference when it came to the paint scoring in this game. The undersized Bucks could not stop the Knicks as New York outscored them 54-28 down in the paint throughout this game. Lopez has established himself as a lethal rim-protecting big man in Milwaukee, which they missed dearly last night.
It was nice to have Bobby Portis back on the floor after he also missed time with injuries early, but he is not the defender that Lopez is. Antetokounmpo will have to continue playing the bulk of his minutes at center until Lopez returns, but they will struggle to win games if the opposing team is outscoring them by that much in the paint and dominating the glass in a similar fashion.
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The Bucks will aim to get back on the right track as they take on the Washington Wizards Sunday at 5:00 p.m. CST. Be sure to catch the action on Bally Sports Wisconsin for those viewing locally.