2021 NBA Finals: Phoenix Suns vs Milwaukee Bucks

there will be closer games than this (and this is not over at all), but i'm feeling good about my take that there aren't really any obvious matchup advantages for the bucks.

another trend that i'm watching is which guys can just get hot. i think from the bucks side only middleton has a chance of getting hot and carrying them on offense for a couple minutes. he may actually be doing it now but it's probably too late.

I’m into these phx bros. Wholesome bros just excited to #RalleyTheValley

middleton has hit like four really difficult out-of-rhythm 3s and it’s the only reason the bucks aren’t down by 30 right now

there will be closer games than this (and this is not over at all), but i'm feeling good about my take that there aren't really any obvious matchup advantages for the bucks.

another trend that i'm watching is which guys can just get hot. i think from the bucks side only middleton has a chance of getting hot and carrying them on offense for a couple minutes. he may actually be doing it now but it's probably too late.

It's a good take, cad. When both teams are playing well I think phx wins. It's possible mil figures them out enough to get a few w's but 4 seems unlikely.

MIL 2-6
PHX 19-19

― frogbs, Tuesday, July 6, 2021 10:49 PM (five minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

i'm sure this is painful. both of these teams are low FT rate iirc and the bucks especially so if giannis is limited (while on the other side booker has been seeking contact all game). but i think the officiating has been ok.

CP killing Portis here

bucks have to adjust and slow it down and not play the game the suns want to play, phoenix is just getting everything they want

Phx loves to play slow tho

true, could be that whatever pace favors phoenix, but they're getting a lot of pretty quick shots tonight! but it's true that they're pretty dribbly

i think the difference is that phx playing slow means they run things they are super comfortable with while the bucks don't seem to have a go-to halfcourt offense that works

I'd take cp3 in a half court game vs just about anyone

And Booker

yeah suns can do so much out of the pick and roll

crowder way off tonight

Dude is all or nothing

I thought I was being harsh for thinking he hadn't scored but nope 0-8

Bucks are at least running some nice plays out of timeouts

brooooos

Lol vintage cp foul f that guy tho

oh my god CP3

sick play by cp

Yah and the suns are doing the thing where they’re all playing well again and the bucks just never seem to get their best from their best at the same time

Jrue has definitely been better than Bledsoe was but they are just not gonna win if he plays like this

bledsoe i got but i'm pretty unclear on the conditions under which jrue plays well

he plays pretty good when Giannis is out

Jrues inconsistent shooting has def hurt them in these playoffs

i feel ridiculous piling on the overall ayton praise but he was perfect tonight, he plays such a smart and in control game, i'm a huge fan of what he's doing.

Omg don't miss ft

Yah Ayton is shooting like 70% + in the playoffs. Doing everything within the flow and offense and rebounding like crazy.

that was a bummer but I'm not too discouraged yet, Bucks lost the previous two Game 1s and actually managed to make it somewhat close in the 4th despite the Suns playing pretty much perfectly. plus Giannis actually looked pretty good, didn't seem hobbled at all really.

Budenholzer definitely has his hands full, they're not defending the pick n' roll well and seem helpless vs. teams that can actually use them to make midrange shots. also they have more than one player to worry about which makes this a bit different than the last two series

btw I ain't gonna complain about the officiating but it's nuts Middleton didn't get a single FT, dude was taking a ton of contact

the bucks being +15 from three on 44% shooting and losing by 13 doesn't feel like a great omen.

you have to assume the free throw disparity will equalize especially when the bucks go home but the suns don't foul a lot & aside from giannis the bucks don't have anyone who is gonna pound the FT line. middleton having zero FTs is an anomaly but he's also only averaging 4 FT per game in the playoffs. tucker, brook, jrue are not gonna shoot a lot of FTs. the bucks have won a lot of games in this postseason by getting a lot of extra points outside the normal flow of their offense and idk if the suns are gonna let a lot of that happen.

the bucks role players also played pretty well, getting 6-11 from three from portis, teague, connaughton & forbes is an A-level game from that group. i could see them having some bigger games at home but that might be the best they provide on the road in this series.

there weren't any peripheral factors that slanted against the bucks aside from free throws, a lot of what the suns did in this one feels repeatable to me. i think what it comes down to for the bucks is if they have more games where they're only getting 30 combined points from giannis and jrue it's going to be a tough hill for them to climb

Giannis was +1 in his 35 minutes so that's kind of a good sign. obviously it sucks to have them finally hit some 3s and still get crushed, but on the other hand CP3 ain't shooting 63% every game. ultimately the Suns just seem to have a gear that the Bucks don't. as Spottie mentioned they rarely have a game where their big 3 are all playing well at the same time. instead it's usually "Giannis was good but missed a lot of FTs, Middleton got hot for 5 minutes, Jrue mostly sucked" and that ain't enough to win against a team that pretty much plays perfectly. who knows, maybe the Suns will cool off, maybe Bud will figure something out, it's a long series but yeah that felt like a total blowout even if it wasn't on the scoreboard

suns have edges up and down the roster. think the refs missed calls when khris and giannis were getting hit, but it's hard for the bucks when the suns can put giannis on the line instead of letting him shoot every time he attacked in the 4th. really takes the momentum out of a comeback

bucks should fire Bud and hire Ty Lue to make adjustments before the start of the next game

ayton is gonna be a real force in the league

he's so good at winning rebounding battles

divincenzo is a big loss for the bucks in this matchup

Jrue has definitely been better than Bledsoe was but they are just not gonna win if he plays like this

― frogbs, Tuesday, July 6, 2021 11:18 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

bledsoe i got but i'm pretty unclear on the conditions under which jrue plays well

― call all destroyer, Tuesday, July 6, 2021 11:20 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

he plays pretty good when Giannis is out

― frogbs, Tuesday, July 6, 2021 11:22 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

Jrues inconsistent shooting has def hurt them in these playoffs

― pure rim rest (Spottie), Tuesday, July 6, 2021 11:25 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

they gave up a ton for jrue and he has definitively not delivered

can they still fire bud if the bucks lose this, maybe hed do better under a different regime

maybe he could coach football

serious question though if they do fire Bud which better coaches are out there? like I would've loved Carlisle had they lost to the Nets but now that he's off the table the only one I can think of is maybe D'Antoni

they gave up a ton for jrue and he has definitively not delivered

― lag∞n, Wednesday, July 7, 2021 7:06 AM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

his shot has been off but I'm pretty sure they would've been hopeless vs. Brooklyn without him. he's played pretty good defense at least.

the bucks D has been great the whole offs and im sure jrue is a big part of that but for 3 1sts and a max deal you need more than a defensive specialist, and its not just his shooting thats been bad he really just has not been a factor on offense, looks like any other guy out there really

i definitely see that but i can't shake the feeling that it's a system thing, with the thread running through Bledsoe and now Jrue. something about the way Bud uses his PGs, or maybe it has to do with how much of the ball and the focus Giannis sucks up, idk

it could def be a system thing i mean jrue has been a very good player hos whole career

he's a very good player but he's never been a set it and forget it lead ballhandler where you would just give him all the touches and say ok my offense is going to be solid.

i do think if the bucks played with more continuity on offense they could clean up some of his poor decisionmaking.

it would be funny if the bucks won the finals and still fired bud

which they should probably do

that would be such a galaxy brain move, I would love it