Why would we change something?

The main question that comes up in the first game of the troubled Celtics-Bucks series is how the Bucks are planning to recover after being knocked out by a home defeat. In summary, the Bucks, head coach Mike Budenholzer, do not think strategic adjustments are needed – improved energy, focus and performance, of course, but no tactical changes are required :

ESPN's Tim Bontemps found some of this thinking in an article today, especially by Giannis Antetokounmpo, who categorically rejects the idea of ​​making adjustments after being radically humiliated by Al Horford:

"Absolutely not," he said to the question of whether the Bucks should make big changes to their game plan to answer the way the Celtics played. "We will just continue to do what we have done all year. I do not think we should change at all. Why should there be a change after a lost game? We should not be the team that performed the adjustment.

"We will go out and play our toughest and see how the second game goes. If it's not right for us, then you can think about adjusting yourself. But for the moment, we have not adjusted anything. We will just play. To be us. Go ahead and compete. "

There is certainly something in the idea that the Bucks have to do their usual shit better than in the first game. They were remarkably slow to take the offensive, and their bland and predictable approach to getting Giannis to point fingers at Boston's disciplined defense. Time and time again, Giannis tried to get past Horford first, then hit an ocean of arms, then tried to make his way through the traffic and eventually stumbled. For example, placing Giannis at the post instead of letting him attack from the perimeter would not be a great strategic departure, so Boston has fewer options to prevent him from accessing the painting. . The basic strategy of Giannis-plus-shooters that pushed Milwaukee to reach the league's best record this season is a good one, and the Bucks would be crazy to see him again now.

But there are two things to note: first, the Bucks lost Game 1 with 22 points, and at no point in the second half did they seem able to disturb the Celtics at either end; and secondly, the Bucks already made make adjustments in this series. Giannis, for example, made five three-point attempts in 34 minutes, nearly double his regular season game average. Khris Middleton, jailed and frustrated by the untold number of long and athletic wing defenders in Boston, used less than a fifth of Bucks' possessions during his minutes, a drop in the numbers. use of weapons (24.4%) at a fourth or fifth option. These goods have tilted towards the horrible combination of Ersan Ilyasova (22% use in 19 minutes) and Pat Connaughton (24% use in 24 minutes), among others. low-skilled finishers. Brook Lopez took just four three-run points in a 26-minute run, two fewer attempts than his regular season average.

What's Disturbing in the Approach More of the same, but better is less than the Bucks are stubborn about introducing wrinkles after such a one-sided loss and even more so that their reluctance might indicate a lack of wrinkles ready to l & # 39; employment. Budenholzer has presented a similar attack with the Atlanta Hawks in Atlanta, with the goal of tackling a relatively unimpressive training for a 60-win season in 2015 and seeded the playoffs of the Conference of the Year. Is. Admittedly, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers suffered a decisive playoff defeat, but this entire series was marked by a disastrous return to mortality and their sixth-place finish dropped by more than six points per hundred goods in the post-season . Coach Bud played regularly in Atlanta in playoffs. His favorite attack is the killer of the regular season, but let's say this is not the first time he's ensured against a fierce defense to the playoff intensity.

The involuntary redistribution of shots in the five best offensives of the regular season in Milwaukee is the result of the fact that Boston has forced them to move away from what they want to do: embody Giannis in dribbling paint real, and place Middleton kitchen switch advocates on the perimeter … and in shit they would prefer not to do, like anything that involves Ilyasova. The fact is that adjustments are made whether a team plans them or not. The Bucks have work to do, play the second game without one of their most versatile ground spacers against a team that seems to have their number. Nobody is looking for them to suddenly take the offense to Stanford, but some thoughtful adjustments seem far more likely to take off Boston's defense than to just, um, try harder. If stubbornness does not fill the frankly huge gap revealed in the first game, the Bucks have a very good chance of having missed their last realistic opportunity to try something else.