3 questions before Game 5 between Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics

Will we see the Milwaukee Bucks change how they defend Al Horford in Game 5?

I don’t know what has gotten into Al Horford the last couple of games but as a basketball fan, I love it. As a fan of the Bucks, however, I am not enjoying the Horford renaissance quite as much!

Horford scored 52 points on 79.4 percent true shooting (including 95.2 percent in Game 4) in both games in Milwaukee. Driving that has been his 9-of-14 shooting from 3 and he’s shooting 50 percent this series on 28 attempts.

After shooting 33.6 percent from 3 on nearly four attempts in the regular season, the Bucks have conceded any and all Horford 3s in pick-and-pops. Outside of his 1-of-5 night in Game 2, Horford has made them pay from deep.

His hot shooting begs the question: will the Bucks change their defensive coverage with Horford to limit his open looks?

In defense of how they’ve been defending him so far, the logic makes sense. Horford shot 31 percent on 187 above the break 3-point attempts in the regular season. You would let him take that shot all the time! 31 percent, even for a big man, isn’t great and if he gets hot, tip your cap.

In the playoffs, Horford is shooting 52 percent on 25 above the break 3s.

I’m a man of percentages and numbers so I’d say that he can’t keep getting away with this but with only a maximum of three games remaining in the series, can the Bucks afford to find out?

I’d prefer they continue to contain Tatum and Brown as best they can with their bigs in a drop or hedging but it’s getting dicey leaving Horford open considering how he’s shot the ball. If history is any indicator, Budenholzer likely will let Horford continue to fire away from 3 and hope he cools off at some point because, well, he has to, right?

The Milwaukee Bucks will hope Horford reverts to his Game 2 shooting but with a more positive final score tonight.