Milwaukee Bucks: Takeaways From Win Over Washington Wizards
Dec 23, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks center Greg Monroe (15) drives for the basket as Washington Wizards forward Jason Smith (14) defends during the second quarter at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
The Milwaukee Bucks dominated the Washington Wizards in Milwaukee in a performance that won’t soon be forgotten.
Early on, it seemed like the Milwaukee Bucks and Washington Wizards were going to have a real basketball game. The Bucks offense looked good, and the Wizards were hitting threes to counter Milwaukee’s buckets.
Then Giannis Antetokounmpo missed a long two, and it seemed like there was a chance that the Bucks would settle for bad shots like that again, fueling a potential Washington surge. That did not happen. Not even close.
Instead, Giannis and the Bucks pulled away and never looked back. Milwaukee outscored the Wizards in each of the four quarters–it’s pretty impossible to lose a game when you don’t lose a single quarter!
Steve Novak and Miles Plumlee got in the game, which means the Bucks were either blown out or blowing somebody else out. Luckily for fans in attendance, it was the latter this time around.
There were MVP chants heard in the BMO Harris Bradley Center on Friday! There’s a lot to talk about here. As usual, we’ll go through some takeaways to the action to recap what happened last night in Milwaukee.
Nov 5, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) hangs onto the rim after dunking for a basket in the third quarter during the game against the Sacramento Kings at BMO Harris Bradley Center. The Bucks beat the Kings 117-91. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
MVP
Giannis was practically unbelievable on Friday night. He scored 39 points, the first Milwaukee Buck to hit that scoring mark since Monta Ellis did in 2013. If the Greek Freak had made another free throw he would’ve dropped 40, which hasn’t been done by a Buck since Brandon Jennings dropped 55 back in 2009.
Completely arbitrary marks aside, Giannis owned this game. He got all the shots he wanted in addition to his other statistics, which included eight rebounds, six assists, two steals and a block.
Giannis continued to use his ability to get inside against the Wizards over and over. He made 12 of his 19 shot attempts, and got to the line a staggering 17 times, missing just two of those free throw attempts.
It’s starting to become apparent that Giannis is figuring out more and more of his game. When he gets inside the defense usually has two options–fouling him, or watching him score. Now that he’s making almost all of his free throws on a nightly basis, neither of the options are good.
The best part about watching Giannis play is when you realize he’s going to dunk before the defense does. Because he covers so much ground, he’ll start to prepare for a dunk around the three-point line, and nobody on the other team is ever ready for it. Here’s an example:
Here’s another angle. By the time the Wizard defenders started to reach for the ball to interrupt Giannis’ dribble, he’s already gathered it for a dunk.
Literally unfair. When he was at the line with 38 points, Bucks fans started chanting MVP. Those chants are not unwarranted. Giannis Antetokounmpo is almost single-handedly making the Bucks relevant again, and he’s simultaneously placing himself on a very selective list of NBA players.
Dec 21, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon (13) drives to the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the second half at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs won 113-102. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Perfection
Malcom Brogdon is something else. The “rookie” was perfect from the field on Friday night, making seven-of-seven shots including three three-point attempts. Brogdon is only the fourth NBA player to have a perfect game this season, joining Ian Clark, Rudy Gobert and Taj Gibson.
Brogdon has established himself as the best pick in his draft class thus far, and he’d be the runaway Rookie of the Year favorite were it not for Joel Embiid single-handedly saving The Process in Philadelphia.
In addition to his flawless 17 points, Brogdon also added seven assists, three rebounds and two steals. Is there a chance that Brogdon is already the best non-Khris Middleton guard on the Bucks roster? I think there is.
Milwaukee needs him to run the second unit offense, but if Brogdon continues to be this damn good Jason Kidd might have to finesse him into the starting five more, or at least into the closing five more. This dude has been even better than expected, and he had high expectations for a second-round pick!
Dec 21, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Jabari Parker (12) drives to the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) during the second half at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs won 113-102. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Jabari Time
A huge concern fans had about Jabari Parker was that he wouldn’t be able to contribute much besides bulk scoring. That’s a topic of conversation floating around Andrew Wiggins right now, and it’s not fun.
If you’re still saying that in 2016-17, you’re not watching Jabari very closely. He draws tough defensive assignments all the time, and on Friday he dipped his toes into rim protection. It turned out well:
Jabari also got two steals, one of which he instantly turned into some sweet, sweet fast break offense.
The finish on that play is so gorgeous. Just because we’re rolling sharing amazing Jabari Vines, here’s him gifting Giannis with a Kobe assist on a nice put-back dunk.
Jabari is really freaking good. The Bucks can be really freaking good, too. Once Middleton comes back, things will get really exciting in Milwaukee.
Dec 23, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Tony Snell (21) dunks during the third quarter against the Washington Wizards at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Snelly Snelly Snelly
First, an apology. I’m sorry Tony Snell. I doubted you. I said I didn’t trust you, and that you shot too much, and that Rashad Vaughn should start over you. I was wrong. I accept that now.
You do shoot too much, for sure, and I still believe in Rashad, but I can’t say I don’t trust a player who’s willing to go face-first into the crowd in a blowout win for a loose ball.
I trust Tony Snell. He also scored 11 points on five-for-eight shooting and added three rebounds, two assists and a block, but more importantly he added trust. The Michael Carter-Williams trade (part two) was dope.
Snell is still shooting a career-low 30 percent from deep, and his one-for-four three-point shooting performance on Friday didn’t help matters any. He’s made over 61 percent of his twos though, which makes the lack of outside accuracy a lot easier to stomach.
The Bucks will be back again after Christmas, when they take on the Wizards once more, this time in Washington on Tuesday.
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