3 personnel adjustments the Milwaukee Bucks need to make in Game 7
By Dalton Sell
No. 2 – The Milwaukee Bucks need to pull Grayson Allen from the starting five and possibly not play him at all in Game 7 versus the Boston Celtics
After stepping up mightily in the Milwaukee Bucks’ first round series against the Chicago Bulls, Grayson Allen has looked like a shell of himself in this series.
Across six appearances, Allen is averaging a mere 5.7 points while shooting 36.1 percent from the floor and 25 percent from 3-point range. With the Bucks desperately calling for contributions from the supporting cast, Allen has failed to help the cause. Allen is given significant minutes due to the elite shooting he can bring to the table, but he has been awful in this series. The guard certainly is not making up for this poor play offensively by shining on the defensive end, so his inability to hit shots with any consistency makes him a liability.
Speaking of defense and liabilities, the Celtics have expertly exploited Allen on the defensive end in this series at every turn. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have hunted the mismatch time and time again, scoring on him with ease consistently. Yet, Budenholzer has still felt comfortable giving him 27.2 minutes per game in this series, which has hurt Milwaukee’s defense drastically. Allen is not a stout defender, which has been on full display throughout these six games. As the Celtics continue to exploit him on that side of the basketball, it is time for a change.
Given how poorly Allen has played on both ends, he cannot start for the Bucks in Game 7. His shot attempts have just not fallen with any regularity and his defense has been abysmal on top of that. In fact, due to this, it might not be the worst idea to keep Allen on the sidelines for the entirety of the upcoming matchup, as they cannot afford this subpar play in Game 7. It would be unlike coach Budenholzer to bench Allen for the entire game, but given his abysmal play in the series thus far, it might be the only way for the Milwaukee Bucks to go.