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LAS VEGAS — There were skeptics.
Sure, Milwaukee had won 10-of-12 and had a top-10 offense and defense in its last 15, but not everyone was buying in after witnessing an ugly 2-8 start to the season. Much of the Bucks’ turnaround came with wins against future lottery teams, the Bucks lacked a signature win.
They have one now.
Even if it doesn’t count in the standings.
The Milwaukee Bucks have won the NBA Cup. In the second half, they pulled away from an ice-cold shooting Oklahoma City team to win 97-81.
“I think it just showed what we’ve been building,” Damian Lillard said. “I think it all came out in our biggest game to this point… from the film room to practice, to us becoming a more connected team and trust on both sides of the ball. I feel like it just, it shined bright at a really important game for us.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo put together a 26-point triple-double that undersells how much he impacted this game on both sides of the ball. With that, Antetokounmpo was named NBA Cup MVP.
The win really meant something to Lillard — beyond the half-a-million in bonus money going to each of the Bucks for the win — because, for all his accolades in the league, he’s never been on a team that won anything like this.
“I’ve had a lot of experience individually, where I’ve had accomplishments and stuff,” Lillard said. “But to have some, some team success and win something to be the last team standing in this tournament. It feels great.”
The stat that defined this game: Oklahoma City shot 5-of-32 (15.6%) on 3-pointers.
That mattered because OKC leads the NBA in drives per game, and the Milwaukee defense relies on drop coverage, which uses the length and size of Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez to clog the lane and take away shots at the rim. The Thunder drove, drew in the defense, kicked out to open shooters, and… clanked shots off the rim they usually make.
Milwaukee deserves some credit for the Thunder’s cold shooting night, especially how they kept Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams in check after the first quarter. That duo was a combined 5-of-14 from the midrange in the final three quarters, an area of the…
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Author : NBC Sports
Publish date : 2024-12-18 05:57:00
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