Prokorov wrote:Paradise wrote:It may not be a popular opinion but I think we need to find some minutes for DJ or Alize in this series.
We still need some size to combat against Lopez who will look to kill us for revenge and Portis who’s extremely physical on the glass.
Lopez is going to become unplayable in this series. and if lopez is trying to score inside, we already won.
There is no way brook lopez scoring in the post is going to outpace durant/kyrie/harden led team
Hello Brooklyn wrote:Agreed. If the Bucks play Lopez we will hunt for him on switches every time.
We know Brook's game. He will get smoked by Kyrie or Harden.
I think you guys are way off on Lopez despite being familiar with him from years ago. For one, the Bucks don't switch with Lopez. They play a drop defense with Lopez with the primary defender fighting over the screen. Brook drops down to around the FT line and cuts off the paint while the primary recovers. They are more than happy to let Griffin pop for open jump shots if he is in. Neither Claxton or DJ can shoot jumpers. For Brooklyn, you are probably going to see quite a lot of pull up midrange jumpers from Durant and Kyrie in these situations with the recovering defender applying pressure from the back/side and Brook trying to get a hand in their face. They are both deadly midrange shooters, but it is still better for the defense than a shot in the paint or an open three.
Offensively, Lopez averaged only 2.0 3PA against Miami. He made only 1 three the entire series, but still had one of his best offensive series as a Buck (15.8 PPG, .656 TS%). He spent a ton of time around the paint looking for finishes off of drives. With his size, smarts, and solid hands, he was able to finish a lot of plays. The Bucks did go to him occasionally on the block when he had a mismatch (Ariza, Iggy, etc.), but it isn't a primary option. That is likely to stay the same against the undersized Nets. If the Nets, say, try to hide Harden on him or put Durant on him so the C can guard Giannis, the Bucks may attack that match up and see how it goes. If Brook can't exploit it, they'll go away from it quickly. Even at his best, Brook is well down the list of offensive options.
Griffin is the guy I think could lose minutes out of the bigs on the two teams. If he's not hitting the open jump shots the Bucks will be willing to give him, it may make more sense to play Claxton or even DJ more minutes for more size, rebounding, and paint protection in a series where Giannis is likely going to be attacking the rim as much as possible. The drop defense can also be susceptible to lobs to the 5 man when the primary defender can't recover fast enough and Lopez has to step further out of the paint.
Edit:
Just saw this post and picked out this point specifically.
Prokorov wrote:8) The bucks made blake shoot threes. like wide open dared him to shoot like he was rondo or ben simmons. He didnt make enough to make them stop doing it. Jeff Green hit a billion pick and pop threes it seemed like. He looks ot be out or limited. Blake's ability to hit threes will likely play a huge role in this series. He needs to hit those, especially early on in the series.
I think this is key because this is a fundamental aspect of the Bucks entire defensive scheme. They leave the 5 man open on the perimeter in pick and roll situations. Green being out is huge because he's an athletic 6-9 dude you can put on Giannis who can also hit jumpers. With him possibly out for the series, the pressure is on Blake to exploit what the Bucks do defensively. If he can't hit threes, the Nets are at a disadvantage playing Claxton and DJ more minutes than you'd like. The best way to exploit the Bucks defense is by creating space. Having non-shooters like Claxton and DJ on the court hurts. You don't want Lopez to spend the entire series patrolling the paint. I know some of you don't like Brook, but he has become a legit All-D caliber defender in the Bucks scheme.
