The Milwaukee Bucks’ defense is a glaring weakness.
Don’t let obscure just how well Giannis Antetokounmpo played on Thursday night — motivated after a bogus ejection the night before and having to step up with Damian Lillard out (calf), he dropped 54 points on the Indiana Pacers on 19-of-25 shooting plus 18 trips to the free throw line.
Giannis put up a special 54-point performance in Indiana 👀
— NBA (@NBA) November 10, 2023
54 PTS, 19/25 FGM, 12 REB
The Pacers outlasted the Bucks down the wire. pic.twitter.com/9BZnpm5blx
It was a brilliant performance, Antetokounmpo was in attack mode with 20 of his 25 shots coming in the paint, most near the rim. This was the seventh 50+ game of Antetokounmpo’s career.
However, midway through the fourth quarter Pacers coach Rick Carlise made an adjustment, throwing a hard double-team at Antetokounmpo the second he touched the ball in the halfcourt. It forced another Pacer to step up — none really did — and took Antetokounmpo out of his rhythm. That showed in the final minute when Antetokounmpo had two critical turnovers — one where he threw the pass way over the head of the 7'1" Brook Lopez — that helped Indiana seal the win.
As good as Antetokounmpo and Lillard have been at points, it can’t cover up for the Bucks’ 25th-ranked defense this season. A changing roster and coaching staff have torn at the fabric of a defense that was foundational to Milwaukee’s first title in 50 years. Combine that with Indiana having the best offense in the NBA so far this season — a 121.5 offensive rating that is more than three points clear of second place (Denver, 118.4) — and catching those high-flying Pacers on the second night of a back-to-back, it’s a recipe for another Bucks loss. Milwaukee is 5-3 on the young season, not a bad record but they have not looked near the level of Boston or Philadelphia.
Tyrese Haliburton continued his strong play to start the season with 29 points and 10 assists to lead the Pacers, while Bennedict Mathurin had 26 points and 11 rebounds.
