NBA Friday: Bucks/Wolves
It would have been a miss to not watch the NBA Friday game of the week. Luckily, YouTube TV and the NBA League Pass make this easy to do. If you want to go to bed early on Friday - no worries you can watch Saturday morning. Catching up on the action, why I think the Bucks are more like the Celtics of old and what the Wolves are missing.
Bucks vs. Wolves:
I hadn’t been able to watch a full games of the Bucks with Doc at the helm. I’d heard some of the noise, seen the headlines, and noted a 3-7 record start. However, after watching my first full game with the ’new’ Bucks - I’ve decided I like what I see.
This Bucks team is more like the Celtics teams Doc had in the past. When he was with the 76ers there was an element of maturity missing (queue Ben Simmons and James Harden) and I can’t think of a good excuse for the Clippers. This Bucks team has talent, maturity, and seems like they’d be more of an Ubuntu type squad. They are going to allow Doc to coach how he needs too and the players will own the blame for losing. Dame cares less of what people think and Giannis already has 1 title. It's all about winning and it doesn’t matter who gets the credit or blame.
Tuning into the game it felt like an NBA Friday game should. It had somewhat of a playoff atmosphere vibe and you knew you were watching two great teams play. The Wolves were quite impressive and not at the same time. They are young, long on defense, and have Ant and Kat to run the offense. They play with great energy and appear to be a top tier team. It's issues like the 3rd quarter that worry me. The Bucks won the third quarter (36-13) which ultimately allowed them to walk away with the game. This shows the vulnerability of the Wolves. They somewhat lack maturity and shooting to get them over the hump during tough situations. It was like watching them slip back into the 8-9th seed Wolves from a few years ago.
The difference maker for the Bucks was Dame Time stepping up in the 4th after a poor shooting three quarters, all defensive player Brooke Lopez who also hit 4 threes (all in the 1st quarter), and the 21 free throw attempts by Giannis. It’s hard to say the Bucks aren’t the better team and it showed in the victory.
In a potential Finals matchup (probably a stretch for the Wolves), I’d have to take the Bucks 4-2 or possibly 4-3 if it went to 7 games. The Wolves aren’t on that level yet and I’m not sure what gets them over the hump. Maybe just more time in the seat.
I’m looking forward to seeing more from this Bucks team. I think I’m going to regret not picking them as a top team in the East or even giving them the sleeper pick. Doc is going to treat this team more like the old Boston Celtics. He’s got the talent, maturity, and Pat Bev. What could go wrong?
Peace
