Currently submerged in a 0-2 hole, the Milwaukee Bucks find themselves in trouble as their playoff series with the Indiana Pacers shifts to Wisconsin.
All hope is certainly not lost yet. This team has proven it can climb out of holes before. As long as the Bucks have Giannis Antetokounmpo, anything is possible. However, if they want to do it this time, it will require some legitimate adjustments. It remains to be seen whether or not Doc Rivers will actually make them, though. The first two games saw him stick to his guns, and it failed.
Ahead of Game 3, the most obvious change is altering the starting five to better combat Indiana.
The Milwaukee Bucks need a new starting five against the Pacers
Brook Lopez has started in all 77 of his playoff games with the Milwaukee Bucks. It may be time for his streak to end. The Pacers are simply a bad matchup for the big man, as they pick on his lack of speed, mobility and athleticism by drawing him out to the perimeter and blowing by him. Lopez can still be an impactful defender right under the hoop, but the Indiana Pacers know how to take that away.
To highlight these struggles, Pacers players are shooting 17-of-26 (65.4 percent) with Brook Lopez as their primary defender in these two meetings. Among players to defend at least 20 shot attempts, that is the highest percentage in the entire NBA Playoffs. The big man simply is no match for Indiana, and the Milwaukee Bucks need to act accordingly.
Lopez alone isn't at fault, but his defensive struggles are a big reason for Milwaukee's slow starts in this series - the Bucks are a combined -18 in two first quarters. This team needs to find a way to be more impactful right out of the gate, and inserting some speed, mobility or athleticism into the mix could certainly help the cause.
It would be unheard of, but swapping Lopez for Bobby Portis would make some sense. Portis himself is no athletic freak, but he's held his own defensively this series while also scoring and rebounding at an impressive rate. His energetic presence could give this team life right away. Off the bench, it's not foolish to think Jericho Sims, who is an athletic freak, should be playing a much larger role.
Having Portis and Sims eat minutes from Lopez could help in this particular matchup, but it's not the only change Rivers should make to the first five. AJ Green should slot in for Taurean Prince at the two. Getting a legitimate shooting guard on the floor would make sense, especially when that player is the caliber of shooter and defender that Green is.
A starting five of Damian Lillard, AJ Green, Kyle Kuzma, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis is certainly not perfect, but it could give the Milwaukee Bucks a better shot at starting games faster.
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