10:00 PM EST, TNT – Line: Bucks -3.5, Over/Under: 231
As the National Basketball Association’s Trade Deadline nears, the league’s last two champions clash in the City of Angels as the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers meet in a matchup of two teams occupying very different places in the standings, from cyrpto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California. Before we get to the NBA’s favorite drama capital, we’ll begin with the Bucks (34-21, 3rd in Eastern Conference), who after securing their first Larry O’Brien trophy in fifty years are still searching for the consistency necessary to successfully defend said championship. So, what in the name of Oscar Robertson is going on in Milwaukee, you ask? Well, as you can expect, the reigning champs returned largely intact for the 2021-2022 campaign, what with (two-time MVP) Giannis Antetokounmpo (28.9 PTS, 53.6% FG, 72.5% FT, 11.2 REB, 5.9 AST, 1.0 STL, 1.4 BLK, 31.5 PER) along with (All-Stars) Khris Middleton (19.4 PTS, 44.2% FG, 38.0% 3FG, 88.5% FT, 5.6 REB, 5.3 AST, 1.3 STL, 18.6 PER) and Jrue Holiday (18.0 PTS, 50.2% FG, 39.6% 3FG, 76.0% FT, 4.6 REB, 6.6 AST, 1.5 STL, 0.5 BLK, 20.0 PER) back to lead the way. However, after a summer in which all three players hopped on a plane to compete in the Summer Olympics immediately following the NBA Finals, this triumvirate hasn’t enjoyed much time together on the hardwood this season thanks to fatigue and injuries; Antetokounmpo, Middleton, and Holiday have featured together in just twenty-five of their fifty-five games thus far and is currently just the ninth-most utilized three-man combination that (Head Coach) Mike Budenholzer has relied upon. This threesome has logged 419:38 of gametime thus far, with the team +14.1 in points, +.08 in field goal percentage, +4.0 in rebounding, and +2.8 in assists when they are together on the court. Granted, the Bucks are 20-5 when those three are all healthy, which has been the case of late, with the trio competing in each of their last six contests, a period in which they’ve gone 4-2. Winning their first two outings of this four-game westward road trip, Milwaukee has gotten off to a scintillating start with runaway victories over the Portland Trail Blazers (137-108) and Los Angeles Clippers (137-113), exploding for 137 points in each affair. After falling behind 32-28 in the first quarter in Los Angeles, the visiting side put the pedal to the metal in the second, shooting 10-of-20 from the field (50.0%), along with 10-of-11 from the free-throw line (90.9%) en route to outscoring the hosts 32-19 in the period. Budenholzer’s charges clamped down on the defensive end, relegating the Clippers to a miserable 6-of-25 shooting (24.0%), including 3-of-11 from downtown (27.3%). Antetokounmpo scored nine of his twenty-eight points during this stretch, though all but nine came from the charity stripe, where the Greek International sank 7-of-7 free-throws. In the end, Los Angeles would never recover as Milwaukee poured in over thirty points in each of the second, third, and fourth quarters, shooting a torrid 54.5% overall, including 19-of-38 from beyond the arc (50.0%), while draining 22-of-27 from the line (81.5%). Furthermore, the deer dominated them in the paint (46-30), while flourishing whenever they pushed the tempo and got out into transition, outscoring the Clippers 28-7 in that regard. In addition to Antetokounmpo’s twenty-eight points, Holiday and Middleton added twenty-seven and seventeen points respectively, with the former nearly matching a season-high with thirteen assists. Budenholzer received a big game out of the unheralded Bobby Portis (15.4 PTS, 48.8% FG, 42.2% 3FG, 9.1 REB, 1.3 AST, 0.7 STL, 0.8 BLK, 18.8 PER), with the veteran big man enjoying a larger role with the club, totaling twenty-four points on 8-of-12 shooting (66.7%) from the floor, including 4-of-5 from three (80.0%), and eleven rebounds. The 26-year-old has continued to grow within Budenholzer’s system, logging a career-high 28.7 minutes per game as the Bucks await the healthy return of (veteran Center) Brook Lopez, who has missed virtually the entire season after undergoing back surgery in early December. Credit to Coach Bud and his staff for continuing to cultivate the supporting cast in the absence of so many starters this season, with the likes of Pat Connaughton (10.2 PTS, 47.3% FG, 41.4% 3FG, 81.1% 3FG, 4.5 REB, 1.3 AST, 0.9 STL, 13.8 PER), Donte DiVincenzo (7.1 PTS, 32.4% FG, 28.6% 3FG, 88.0% FT, 3.6 REB, 1.6 AST, 0.6 STL, 8.1 PER), and (newcomer) Grayson Allen (11.7 PTS, 42.5% FG, 39.3% 3FG, 87.0 FT, 3.5 REB, 1.5 AST, 0.8 STL, 13.1 PER) enjoying their moments in the limelight. Allen in particular has made an impact in his first season with the franchise following a two-year stint in Memphis, with the 26-year-old looking like one of the most improved players in the Association, averaging career-highs in points (11.7), rebounds (3.5), and free-throw percentage (87.0%). After a disappointing 6-8 start, Milwaukee has indeed rounded into form in winning seven of their last nine contests and appear well-placed to make a run in an Eastern Conference that has suddenly been thrown into chaos due to injuries and uncertainty at the looming Trade Deadline; with the top five seeds within a mere 1.5 games of first place, the Bucks currently trail the Heat by only a half-game in the standings. The deer come into this matchup with the Lakers 15-12 on the road this season, averaging 113.0 points per game and yielding 109.9, shooting 46.8% from the field, including 36.7% from downtown, while relinquishing 45.2% shooting overall, including 34.8% from three. In sixteen career meetings, Antetokounmpo has averaged 25.3 points on 58.6% shooting, along with 10.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 0.8 steals, and 1.5 blocks against Los Angeles. When they met back in mid-November, a narrow 109-102 victory at Firserv Forum, the Greek Freak went off for FORTY-SEVEN points on an efficient 18-of-23 shooting (78.3%), including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc (75.0%) and 8-of-11 from the stripe (72.7%), with nine rebounds and three assists. Though this affair was relatively close throughout, the hosts would pull away in the final stanza, leading by as many as nine points with just over two minutes left to play, as Antetokounmpo scored his side’s final eight points of the night. Milwaukee’s defense managed to slow down the LeBron-less Lakers, limiting them to 41.7% shooting, including 12-of-43 from deep (27.9%), really stifling them in the fourth quarter where the visitors could muster a dismal 7-of-25 shooting (28.0%) and 0-of-11 from three. It remains to be seen whether or not the Bucks will be buyers or sellers at Thursday’s Deadline; if they’re to do anything, Budenholzer and (General Manager) Jon Horst will likely be on the lookout for a big man who can stretch the floor alongside Giannis as the aforementioned Lopez continues to rehab from surgery.
Meanwhile, we come to the Lakers (26-28, 9th in Western Conference), who have been mired in a frustratingly inconsistent campaign in which they haven’t come close to reaching the lofty expectations placed upon them in the offseason. Following their first-round exit in last summer’s playoffs, (Head Coach) Frank Vogel and (General Manager) Rob Pelinka completely dismantled the supporting cast surrounding (All-Stars) LeBron James (29.1 PTS, 52.3% FG, 35.1% 3FG, 75.7% FT, 7.8 REB, 6.4 AST, 1.6 STL, 1.1 BLK, 27.2 PER) and Anthony Davis (23.7 PTS, 52.9% FG, 72.6% FT, 10.2 REB, 2.8 AST, 1.3 STL, 2.2 BLK, 24.2 PER) in an attempt to return to the Finals, swinging a sizable deal in acquiring Russell Westbrook (18.4 PTS, 43.7% FG, 30.0% 3FG, 66.8% FT, 7.8 REB, 7.7 AST, 1.1 STL, 15.2 PER) from the Wizards in exchange for Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Kyle Kuzma. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more polarizing star in the NBA than Westbrook, who despite nine All-Star appearances, a pair of scoring titles, three assist titles, and more triple-doubles than anyone in league history, is 33-years old with a diminishing skill set, all the while carrying one of the most bloated contracts in the Association, at over $44 million due this year and the next. However, after James and Davis missed twenty-seven and thirty-six games respectively a year ago, with the latter succumbing to injury in the playoffs as well, the logic was that the addition of Westbrook would serve as insurance if one (or both) of them missed any significant time again, which has turned out to be the case; Davis has already missed twenty-one games with a sprained knee, while James has been sidelined for a total of seventeen outings due to ankle, abdominal, and knee maladies in this, his nineteenth season. As a result, the Lakers have suffered from the same issue that their opponent tonight has, with their triumvirate of stars struggling to stay healthy and play together, only in their case it’s been far more problematic; Los Angeles completely gutted their supporting cast to acquire Westbrook and doesn’t have the benefit of the continuity or internal growth of their role players, while James and Davis are still learning to play with their new erstwhile teammate, whereas Milwaukee’s big three went through a championship run together. With fifty-four games in the books, James, Davis, and Westbrook have only shared the hardwood together on SEVENTEEN occasions, including just TWICE in their last twenty-four outings, and have yet to enjoy a stretch in which they’ve played together for more than three consecutive games. Furthermore, the trio are only the eighth-most utilized lineup for Los Angeles this season at 330:07 of gametime, with the team marginally better when they’re together, averaging +0.9 points, -2.1 rebounds, and -0.9 assists. Simply put, what this group really needs is a prolonged run in which all three of them can develop the requisite chemistry to build a contender, which is something that they’re far from being at the moment; the Lakers are sitting at ninth out West, which is smack dab in the middle of the play-in, which certainly isn’t where they prefer to be after barely navigating their way out of there last summer. 2.5 games out of play-in clearance, there are MANY issues that Vogel’s charges are going to have to clean up, most of all their defense. After leading the NBA in defensive efficiency a year ago, they’ve plummeted to fourteenth (110.0), allowing 112.3 points per game (26th Overall) on 45.4% shooting from the field (15th Overall), including 34.4% from beyond the arc (12th Overall), along with a defensive rebounding percentage of 75.9% (22nd Overall), and 25.8 assists (28th Overall). Losing the likes of Kuzma, Caldwell-Pope, and Alex Caruso, this unit simply doesn’t have the defensive stoppers that it’s had over the previous two seasons, and with Davis and James missing so much time, they’ve struggled to rally the troops. How else can you explain how they’ve managed to lose a league-high eleven contests in which they’ve held a double-digit lead? Furthermore, they’ve been far too careless when in possession, committing 14.7 turnovers per game (26th Overall), with Westbrook accounting for a team-high 4.1 of that figure. It’s really been a rough transition for the former MVP, who finds himself with his fourth different franchise in as many years; Westbrook has struggled to fit in alongside James and Davis, with his lack of shooting unable to create the necessary spacing for his teammates to thrive, while his proclivity towards pushing the tempo has been a double-edged sword. And it’s with that said, that Vogel (who is very much coaching for his job) decided to bench the veteran down the stretch of last Saturday night’s 122-115 triumph over the Knicks, which saw his charges rally back from an embarrassing 19-point deficit in the first half. Los Angeles trailed 21-6 right off the bat, as the visitors shot a torrid 15-of-22 from the field (68.2%) in the first quarter, including 6-of-10 from downtown (60.0%), before heading into intermission with a ridiculous SEVENTY-ONE points. However, the hosts would storm back in the second half, outscoring New York 55-40 thanks in large part to their tenacious play on the defensive end; the home side relegated the Knicks to 13-of-39 shooting in the latter two periods (33.3%), including a dismal 2-of-15 from three (13.3%), while forcing as many turnovers as assists (6). That momentum continued into overtime as LA outscored them 11-4 in the extra period, as the aforementioned James shined in his return from injury, leading the team with twenty-nine points on 13-of-24 shooting (54.2%), along with thirteen rebounds and ten assists, his fourth triple-double of the season. Davis added twenty-eight points on an efficient 13-of-19 shooting (68.4%), seventeen rebounds, three steals, and four blocks, while (young sharpshooter) Malik Monk (13.0 PTS, 47.3% FG, 40.9% 3FG, 78.9% FT, 3.3 REB, 2.5 AST, 0.7 STL, 14.8 PER) went OFF for twenty-nine points of his own on 11-of-20 shooting (55.0%). One of the few newcomers to make an impact in the City of Angels this year, the 24-year-old has worked his way into the starting lineup due to his ability to space the floor, starting fourteen of the last twenty games. With James back as the defacto primary ball-handler, it appears that Vogel is placing his trust in Monk over Westbrook, who was benched after mustering just five points on 1-of-10 shooting from the field (10.0%). Ahead of the Trade Deadline, rumors around the league suggest that the Lakers are doing everything within their power to move Westbrook (and his hefty contract), all but acknowledging that his acquisition was made in haste and that this experiment has been anything but a success. Unfortunately, it’s near-impossible for Pelinka to find a team who will take on that contract, particularly when this franchise hindered by cap restrictions and not possessing the young assets or draft picks to sweeten any deal. However, with James now 37-years old and the pressure to build another champion around him never higher, don’t be surprised if this group looks a bit different when we see them next, for they will surely be on the lookout for reinforcements wherever they can find them, with cheap veterans who can defend and space the floor the mandate.