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Things did not look good for the Milwaukee Bucks in their 115-107 Game 1 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night.
\nThe final score won\u2019t suggest it, but the Nets looked like they were in cruise control the entire way. This doesn\u2019t bode well for the Bucks, especially since Brooklyn essentially played without star shooting guard James Harden who left 43 seconds into the game due to a hamstring strain. Harden\u2019s status for the rest of this series is still up in the air, but if The Beard does come back, that could spell doom for Milwaukee.
\nNonetheless, this is a seven-game series after all. The Bucks can still make adjustments to turn this back into their favor, but they should start executing in Game 2.
\n3. Generate better looks from the perimeter<\/p>\n
The Bucks shot a paltry 6-of-30 from 3-point country in Game 1. Shooting 20 percent from deep definitely isn\u2019t ideal, especially if you\u2019re facing an offensive juggernaut like Brooklyn. Khris Middleton clanked all his five 3-point attempts, while Jrue Holiday made just 2-of-7 from deep.
\nBryn Forbes, Milwaukee\u2019s 3-point specialist off the bench and had a magnificent shooting series against the Heat, was limited to a 2-of-8 shooting night and 1-of-5 from three.
\nAs the saying goes, \u201cit\u2019s a make or miss league.\u201d The Bucks will probably get those shots to go down eventually, but they will need them to fall as soon as Game 2 since they cannot afford to go down 2-0 against a star-studded Nets squad. Still, Milwaukee\u2013who ranked fifth in 3-point percentage in the regular season at 38.9 percent\u2013cannot rely on the law of averages to save them.
\nTo be fair to Brooklyn\u2019s defense, they did a good job with their rotations and did well with their contests. Thus, the Bucks should do a much better job in getting the ball moving on the perimeter. They need to be much more crisp and quicker with their decision-making on their passes to generate better looks for their shooters.
\nTo their credit, Milwaukee took advantage of its size and muscled its way inside, scoring 72 points in the paint. This is something the Bucks should continue doing in Game 2 if they want to steal one on the road before going back to Milwaukee. Antetokounmpo did a great job dominating inside, making all but three of his 16 made field goals in the paint. Brook Lopez also proved to be a problem down low, making easy buckets at the cup.
\nIf the Bucks shoot better from deep, this should open up the paint even more for Milwaukee.
\n2. Better rotations on defense
\nOn the one hand, Milwaukee should be better on the other side of the ball, particularly with regards to their rotations on defense. Brooklyn did a good job moving the ball around to find the open man and this often generated clean looks for their shooters on the perimeter. Overall, the Nets were able to hoist up 40 triples and drained 15 of them, good for a 37.5 percent clip from downtown.
\nThe Bucks need to improve on that end of the floor to prevent easy threes for the Nets. They need to offer more resistance and close out better on Brooklyn\u2019s shooters such as Joe Harris, who drained five 3-pointers on Saturday. It would be much better to force these guys to put the ball on the floor and make a decision on the fly rather than comfortably pulling for a clean look from three.
\n3. Play their stars more
\nBucks head coach Mike Budenholzer has often been criticized for not playing his stars more in the postseason when it matters most. Game 1 showed pretty much the same trend. According to Dave DuFour of The Athletic, these were the minutes the Nets stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving played through three quarters compared to Antetokounmpo, Middleton, Holiday and Lopez.<\/p>\n
Minutes played heading into the 4th
\nKD 33Kyrie 34
\nMiddleton 28Giannis 27Jrue 31Brook 22
\nLet’s see if Bud’s gamble has paid off.
\n\u2014 Dave DuFour (@DaveDuFourNBA) June 6, 2021<\/p>\n