PHOENIX, ARIZONA - JULY 08: Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks rests against the Phoenix Suns during the first half in Game Two of the NBA Finals at Phoenix Suns Arena on July 08, 2021 in Phoenix, Arizona.
Part of the strategy Milwaukee wanted to use in its quest to even up the NBA Finals Thursday wasn’t revolutionary.
It was obvious. It was working. And it was mesmerizing.
“We want Giannis attacking,” Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said pre-game.
Attack he did. Giannis Antetokounmpo was practically unstoppable in the paint, especially in the third quarter, as he put up monster numbers—42 points, 12 boards, and 3 blocks over 40 minutes—in a Finals performance that fans won’t soon forget. But because his running mates couldn’t match his energy or offensive output to seriously threaten Phoenix, Milwaukee disappointingly heads back home in a 0-2 hole.
Behind 31 points from Devin Booker and a barrage of 3-pointers from the entire squad, without much drama, the Suns were able to weather Antetokounmpo’s offensive onslaught and epic swats. The Suns now sit two wins away from the franchise’s first NBA title after their 118-108 victory in Phoenix, but the talk after this one has to be how Antetokounmpo’s epic evening was wasted.
Twitter had a field day piling on Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday who couldn’t muster enough offense to make it close down the stretch. At times it felt like Antetokounmpo—who scored 20 in the third frame, the most by a player in a quarter in the Finals since Michael Jordan in 1993—did everything for the Bucks. If only he had more help—Middleton finished with 11 on 5-of-16 shooting while Holiday had 17 on 7-of-21 shooting—maybe we feel differently about the prospects of this series being something other than a Suns coronation right now.
Because Milwaukee could’ve snatched this one away. A few more stops, a few more loose balls, a few more shots fall from those not named Giannis and I’m writing a different story.
Phoenix, of course, deserves its flowers for shooting lights out from beyond the arc (20-of-40, tying a Finals record for most made threes) and the Bucks deserve demerits for not having answers, again, defensively. Even if Budenholzer liked what he saw from his club on that end.
“I think defensively, I think there’s some progress and improvement,” the Bucks coach said after the game. “We’ve just got to keep working that end, and same thing offensively. We’ve just got to get better and we’ve got to go home and play good basketball.”
Chris Paul added 23 points and 8 assists while Mikal Bridges exploded for 27 points. Phoenix hit 11 threes in the first half (they had 11 in Game 1) and enjoyed an 11-point lead at the half.
“With our team, we got shooters. Like real shooters,” Paul said. “And I say this all the time, it’s nice when you kick it to the guy and you expect him to make it.”
Milwaukee was able to whittle down that lead to a couple of possessions in the fourth quarter, but the Suns once again closed out the game the way championship clubs are supposed to do. While a two-game lead doesn’t mean this series has already been wrapped up for Phoenix—everyone has already pointed out how the Bucks climbed back from an 0-2 deficit against the Nets earlier this postseason—it ain’t looking great for the Bucks right now.
Game 3 tips Sunday at 8 p.m. ET from Fiserv Forum. Here are six other observations from Game 2.
Ain't a Holiday
The Bucks gave up a lot to acquire Jrue Holiday in an offseason trade—a whole lot of future first-round draft picks if you forgot. The defensive whiz was supposed to be a big upgrade over Eric Bledsoe at point guard and be the missing piece for Milwaukee in its quest for the franchise’s first title since 1971.
Two games into the NBA Finals, Holiday hasn’t been a nightmare, but he hasn’t been very good, either. And it’s clearly costing Milwaukee. And if he doesn’t flip the switch, the Bucks may not have enough answers to climb out of the 0-2 hole.
“I think Jrue got some good looks,” Budenholzer said. “I actually think there’s some opportunities where he can be even more aggressive. He’s got to be aggressive from the 3-point (line). He’s got to be aggressive getting to the paint, and he was.”
While Holiday had 17 points, a couple of flashy blocks in Game 2, and showed more aggressiveness, he didn’t bring his A game after a Game 1 performance that saw him only score 10 points and end up with one of the team’s worst individual defensive ratings (121). Between his defense and his horrid shooting (11-of-35 through two Finals games from the field, one made three in 10 attempts) Holiday, one of the game’s good guys, knows more will be needed in Game 3.
“I think we had a lot of open shots that we didn’t make,” Holiday said. “I know me personally, there were a couple layups there that I usually make that kind of rimmed in and out. Had some good looks. Giannis had a great game getting to the basket, penetrating. I feel like we did a pretty good job of penetrating and making plays for other people, but just got to do it a little bit better.”
Never call it a comeback. The Suns entered Game 2 12-0 this postseason when they’ve held a double-digit lead. That record now sits at 13-0 after the poised and polished Suns, playing calmer, cooler, and way more collected than their lack of Finals experience would suggest entering this series, were able to weather a fourth quarter run by the Bucks. Phoenix’s lead never dipped below five points.
The Counting Continues
Antetokounmpo was asked, again, about opposing arenas counting down his free throws during an off-day media session. I’m not really sure why since the Greek Freak gave a pretty insightful and funny answer when asked about it following Game 1. But Antetokounmpo—one of the best guys in the league when it comes to talking honestly and openly about his game—obliged.
“I feel like in the first free throw I shoot I’m kind of like, oh, yeah, here we go again,” Antetokounmpo said. “But by like the fifth or sixth, 10th, go down the line, it kind of fades off. But at the end of the day, you got to embrace it. You cannot fight it. You got to embrace it, and it’s part of me now. So, yeah, I just embrace it and just go with it. I don’t feel pressure, no.”
Which is great because most guys’ knees would be wobbling their next trip to the line after shooting one of these.
Antetokounmpo was 11-of-18 from the line Thursday. He was 7-of-12 in Game 1.
Sure, Booker rolling up to the arena in a different custom car for each of the first two games of the Finals has been fun, but we don’t really do cars at Complex. We’re all about sneakers. So we wouldn’t be doing our job if we didn’t highlight PJ Tucker, the NBA’s No. 1 sneakerhead, stuntin’ before Game 2. The Bucks forward, widely known to have the league’s deepest and rarest collection of kicks, broke out the epically hyped Air Mags for his tunnel walk. Released in 2016, a pair of Nike MAG Back to the Futures (official name) can be yours—depending on your size—for anywhere between $52,000 and $200,000 on StockX. Consult with your accountant before pulling the trigger.
Saric Will Be Missed
Dario Saric is done for the Finals after suffering a torn ACL in Game 1 after just 2:24 of action. It’s a tough loss for the Suns since Saric was a valued rotational player and his absence means Phoenix will need to rely on more minutes from Torrey Craig and Frank Kaminsky when Deandre Ayton needs some rest. While the loss wasn’t particularly felt in Game 1 or Game 2, Williams talked about the emotional toll of not having Saric going forward Wednesday.
“It’s just one of those situations that literally breaks your heart,” Williams said. “Dario is a guy that I’ve been with twice. I coached him in Philly, and to get a chance to be with him here, he’s what Suns basketball is about. Hard worker, unbelievable guy and he was so looking forward to playing in these Finals. And to play a few minutes and have that kind of injury, it was a tough thing to hear this morning when I talked to the staff and they told me what was going on.”
If you care about it, the ratings for Game 1 of the Finals were surprisingly good. We’ve written in the past about the NBA’s ratings problem—real or maybe slightly exaggerated, depending on your perspective—but the league was very happy to trumpet the Suns’ 118-105 victory Tuesday saw a 13 percent increase in viewership compared to last year’s Game 1 win by the Lakers over the Heat. ABC’s broadcast averaged over 8.5 million viewers, peaking at closer to 10 million viewers in the fourth quarter. Game 1, predictably, set 20-year ratings records in the Phoenix and Milwaukee markets.
