In what can only be described as a game fans will want to wipe from their memories, the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Dallas Mavericks 116-114. The Bucks’ late-game foibles resurfaced once again and nearly
cost them; nonetheless, a win is a win. Cooper Flagg led Dallas with 26 points, nine rebounds, and four assists. Read our full summary of the game here and catch a six-minute audio recap on the Bucks+ podcast Bucks In Six Minutes below.
Player Grades
Giannis Antetokounmpo
37 minutes, 30 points, 6 assists, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks, 5 turnovers, 11/18 FG, 1/2 3P, +12
I know this is cheating a bit, but my grade for Giannis is less about just this game and more about what has transpired before it. On the surface, a 30/6/8 game warrants a high grade, but this is mainly about the final few minutes, how horrible they were, and how Giannis keeps making the same mistakes. If Antetokounmpo had had that late-game stretch for the first time, this grade would be much more charitable—we’re at years of this now. We saw just last week (and last season, and the season before that!) against the Pacers that 1) when Giannis dribbles the air out of the ball down the stretch and shoots threes, it gives the opponent exactly what they want, and 2) overzealously contesting three-point shots at the end of games is risky and incredibly dumb. Antetokounmpo, of all people, should know this after he gave away a game-winning four-point play to Tyrese Haliburton last season. Well, the big fella played all the hits last night, plus his body language was very poor at times. Yes, the rest of his game was mostly good; a player of Antetokounmpo’s calibre is always going to rack up stats. However, when you consider how many lessons Giannis should have learned about how to close out games by now, and he still hasn’t evolved in any meaningful way, I think it deserves heightened criticism. GA won’t get many Cs this season, but I think he deserves one for this game.
Grade: C
Myles Turner
27 minutes, 14 points, 7 rebounds, 3/12 FG, 1/7 3P, -11
Myles was not great in this game on either end, which has typically not been the case this season. He got a load of good looks on offence and missed most of ‘em. Turner’s defence wasn’t horrible, but Doc rolled with Portis to close, which tells you that it wasn’t as much of a difference maker as it had been.
Grade: C
Ryan Rollins
32 minutes, 13 points, 8 assists, 1 turnover, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 5/13 FG, 2/4 3P, +13
Just another solid game from Rollins, who’s making a habit of it. Not the most efficient shooting, but as you can see, the dude just impacts so many other areas; that 8:1 assist-to-turnover ratio is impressive. Also, maybe Giannis should look Ryan’s way late in the game and run pick-and-roll with him. Good stuff seems to happen!
Grade: B+
AJ Green
27 minutes, 13 points, 5 rebounds, 4/9 FG, 4/8 3P, +11
AJ did a solid job loosening up the defence for the big fellas inside, but got caught with his hands in the cookie jar too many times, once again, racking up five fouls.
Grade: B-
Gary Trent Jr.
26 minutes, 3 points, 1/4 FG, 1/3 3P, +2
Another so-so game from GT, to go with his so-so season thus far. The ball didn’t really slide his way last night, but I don’t think his defence was too bad or undisciplined.
Grade: C+
Kyle Kuzma
31 minutes, 26 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 10/17 FG, 2/6 3P, -5
I don’t think this plus/minus stat is at all representative of Kuzma’s game. Make no mistake, Kyle saved the Bucks last night with crucial shotmaking, excellent defence, and a general poise that was needed amongst what was sometimes a skittish group. This was probably Kuz’s best as a Buck, right after his second-best performance against the Rockets. Folks, this is the good place. This. Is. Kuzmania.
Grade: A
Cole Anthony
16 minutes, 4 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2/7 FG, -16
Yeah, there’s literally nothing good to say about Anthony’s game last night. Everything he did was negative. Bad turnovers, bad shots. Cole giveth, Cole taketh.
Grade: D
Bobby Portis
27 minutes, 13 points, 7 rebounds, 5/8 FG, 3/5 3P, -5
Man, hats off to BP. He came through with some huge threes to fuel the Bucks’ comeback, was proactive in getting to the right spots to finish plays, and competed well on defence.
Grade: A-
Doc Rivers
As I talked about on Deer Diaries, I don’t know how much blame to assign Giannis’ late-game foibles to Doc. Yes, GA is the best player and dictates a lot, but Doc runs the ship. If the ball isn’t moving, he’s allowed to do something about it! The fact that the team continues to fail to move the ball and produce higher-quality shots does not look good for Rivers. Is he scared to upset Giannis? The best players want to be coached, not coddled. The best player should be just as accountable as the 10th player (but maybe that’s old-fashioned of me). On another note, I will give Doc credit for continuing to cycle through combinations until he found one that was working.
Grade: C-
Limited Minutes: Amir Coffey, Gary Harris
DNP-CD: Andre Jackson Jr., Thanasis Antetokoumpo, Mark Sears, Jericho Sims
Inactive: Kevin Porter Jr., Taurean Prince, Alex Antetokounmpo
Bonus Bucks Bits
- I was less than surprised to learn Giannis said postgame that the reason he looked over at Jason Kidd after hitting a late three was because Kidd used to tell him not to shoot threes when he coached him. I do believe Giannis “wants to win,” but is he all-in on winning, or just mostly in? I mean, someone on the Mavs’ broadcast literally said, “What a bailout for the Mavs!” when he took the second one.
- Ryan Rollins credited the game “slowing down” for him as a key reason for his rise this season. On his crucial bucket to put the Bucks up one late, he said, “all the shots that I shoot, I work on. So, if I get a shot that I feel like I can make and there’s a lane for me, I’m just going to take it. I’m not hesitating.”
- I wrote this for my “stat that stood out,” but the Mavs beat the Bucks on fast-break points 31-6. Wow.
- The Bucks’ bench showed up, beating the Mavs’ bench 43-33.
- It’s interesting that D’Angelo Russell only registered 16 minutes for Dallas, as did Klay Thompson, while Brandon Williams logged 33.
Up Next
The Bucks now head to Charlotte to play the Hornets on Wednesday night. Catch the game at 6:00 p.m. Central on FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin.
