Leftover thoughts and observations after a second viewing of the ugly Game 5 affair between the Bucks and Celtics on Tuesday night.
1. The Celtics committed to the drive-and-kick strategy on offense: Boston was one of the worst teams finishing at the rim in the regular season, so it’s no surprise the C's had run into a bit of trouble in Milwaukee over Games 3 and 4 with their isolation takes to the basket. The Bucks had 13 blocks in each of those contests, thanks to the length of eager defenders like Thon Maker and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Brad Stevens and his staff clearly saw this on film and tried to use it against the Bucks in Game 5 by emphasizing kickouts to the perimeter all night long when the C’s got into the paint. Boston was one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the league during the regular season, so it’s a sound strategy if it produces open looks. It did in Game 5, despite an off shooting night from the team overall (31 percent from 3-point range). However, Boston took 44.9 percent of its field goals attempts from downtown, easily the highest mark of the series. While the results weren’t there (10-of-31 from deep), the Bucks posted a series-low three blocks thanks to this renewed effort from downtown.
The other appeal of the drive-and-kick for Boston is it led to defensive breakdowns after closeouts. The Bucks are not sharp with their rotations, and that led to easy layup opportunities and mismatches throughout Game 5. Despite suffering through an ugly shooting night and 17 turnovers, Stevens should be happy with the looks this group got heading into Game 6.
2. A subtle shift helps slow down Khris Middleton: Stevens was willing to let the shifty Middleton get his over the first four games of the series. The head coach was committed to leaving the wing in one-on-one coverage, even during switches. However, that philosophy changed in Game 5 after watching Middleton shoot a scorching 64 percent from the field over the previous week. There weren’t many blatant double teams of the veteran, but the C’s remained willing to ditch certain players and play a little zone help in Middleton’s area when he got the ball in the mid-post. This type of selective help made Middleton uncomfortable for the majority of his night, and reduced his open looks. The Celtics were content to let others beat them in Game 5 ,and it will be interesting to see if this trend continues, as the Bucks return to their home floor (where role players shoot better).
Marcus Smart’s individual man-to-man defense on Middleton was stellar as well, largely because his ability to get around screens limited the amount of mismatches that Middleton could seek out. This, combined with the addition of Semi Ojeleye to the lineup, left the Bucks small forward looking mortal, as he shot just 40 percent from the field before a meaningless 3-pointer as time expired.
3. Eric Bledsoe continues to kill the Bucks in this series: He shot under 40 percent from the field for the fourth time in this series during Game 5 (5-of-15 from field), looking out of control at the rim on several occasions. His lapses on the defensive end continued to produce open looks for the C’s as well, and Bledsoe’s inability to punish Boston for its willingness to let him take jump shots from the perimeter could ultimately prove to be Milwaukee's demise. Matthew Dellavedova and Malcolm Brogdon don’t have enough of an athletic edge to give Boston’s guards problems on the offensive end, so Joe Prunty continues to stick with Bledsoe for big minutes. Still, Rozier has outplayed him in three of the five games thus far. With Smart back in the fold to help with Middleton and Ojeleye doing a terrific job on Giannis, the pressure will rise for Bledsoe to become a consistent third option for this offense. So far, he’s been an inefficient one.
4. Jayson Tatum’s defensive mistakes lead to crunch-time benching: The luxury of having Smart back in the lineup gave Stevens some options in the closing minutes of Game 5. After watching Tatum lose his men on consecutive possessions via backdoor cuts to the rim and ball watching, the head coach put the rookie on the bench for the final seven minutes. It was a risky move for a team having trouble putting the ball in the hoop for the better part of 48 minutes, but a needed one for the C’s to maximize their defensive potential. Tatum has played above expectations all year long, but there’s no question he’s been a liability at points in this series thanks to his defense. Ball watching won’t be accepted in the half court by Stevens, and Tatum found out the hard way on Tuesday night. It will be interesting to see how Stevens plays it for the rest of the series in tight games, since having Smart and Ojeleye out there together in crunch time is a roll of the dice for Boston’s spacing. A bigger premium could be placed on offense at the Bradley Center in Game 6.
Other leftover observations
- Smart’s help defense was superb on Giannis and Middleton. Both guys didn’t know what hit them on several occasions as he swooped in with timely gambles.
- Ojeleye’s defense was even better on a second watch, when you consider the fact he didn’t get the benefit of any 50/50 charge/block calls. He did a terrific job beating Antetokounmpo to his spots.
- Horford playing center seems to create chaos for Milwaukee when Horford is facing a traditional big. The Bucks got better when they put him Giannis on him.
