Dominant Durant Carries Nets to Pivotal Game Five Win Over Bucks
Kevin Durant played all 48 minutes and led both teams in scoring (49 points), rebounds (17), and assists (10) as the Brooklyn Nets stormed back after trailing by as many as 17 points in the first half (and 16 points at halftime) to outscore the Milwaukee Bucks 71-49 in the second half en route to a stunning 114-108 game five win. Durant joined Oscar Robertson, Charles Barkley, and Luka Doncic on the short list of players who have produced at least 40 points, at least 15 rebounds, and at least 10 assists in a playoff game--and Durant is the first player to have at least 45 points while reaching those rebound and assist totals in a playoff game.
The Nets lead the series 3-2, and can advance to the Eastern Conference Finals with a game six victory in Milwaukee. The Nets were without the services of the injured Kyrie Irving, but Jeff Green poured in 27 points on blistering 8-11 field goal shooting--including 7-8 from three point range--and Blake Griffin chipped in 17 points on 7-11 field goal shooting. James Harden, making his first appearance since a 43 second cameo in game one, showed remarkable durability by playing 46 minutes, but he scored just five points on 1-10 field goal shooting, though he did contribute eight assists and six rebounds offset by four turnovers.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee with 34 points and 12 rebounds and he shot 14-22 from the field in 42 minutes. He did a lot, and yet it could be argued that he should have done more. For one thing, he never matched up with Durant on defense. For all of the talk about P.J. Tucker's heart and toughness and strength, it is obvious that Durant is wearing him out and that Tucker has no answers. Tucker is too short to consistently bother Durant's shot: Durant goes wherever on the court he wants to go, and then he shoots over Tucker. When Durant misses, it cannot honestly be said that Tucker stopped him. Durant just missed--and he did not miss very often during game five. Antetokounmpo is taller than Durant, stronger than Durant, and almost certainly faster than Durant. It is understandable that the Bucks do not want Antetokounmpo to guard Durant for the whole game because that could take away from Antetokounmpo's offense, but Antetokounmpo is a former Defensive Player of the Year, and it is incumbent on him to accept--or demand from the coaching staff--the challenge of guarding Durant on key possessions down the stretch. It is not acceptable for Antetokounmpo to be standing in the corner guarding Joe Harris while Durant hits shot after shot to put the Bucks one loss away from playoff elimination.
During both the halftime show and the postgame show, the TNT studio crew pointed out that the Bucks played--in their words--"stupid" basketball in terms of bad shot selection/failing to identify and exploit mismatches. The halftime comments about those problems foreshadowed Milwaukee's demise. The Nets' offense mainly consisted of giving Durant room to create mayhem--which he consistently did--but the Bucks proved incapable of (1) stopping Durant, (2) trapping him effectively to make someone else beat them by making tough shots (trapping Durant in a way that enables someone else to make a layup or a wide open three is not effective), and (3) exploiting mismatches on offense. No Net can stop Antetokounmpo in the post--and Brook Lopez also enjoys a mismatch advantage in the post--but the Bucks had far too many empty offensive possessions that resulted in bad, low percentage shots. During the postgame show, Charles Barkley singled out a late game possession during which Harden--guarding Antetokounmpo in the post on one good leg--waved off a double team and leaned on Antetokounmpo before Antetokounmpo settled for a turnaround fadeaway shot that he missed. Harden is not a bad post defender--he uses his strength and relatively low center of gravity to his advantage--but that possession had to end in a dunk or a foul on a dunk attempt. Antetokounmpo cannot settle for a fadeaway against an immobile player who is half a foot shorter than he is. That one possession did not decide the outcome of the game, but it is one example of how the Bucks do not exploit their mismatch advantages.
The Nets have one main mismatch advantage, and they wore it (and the Bucks) out by using it: Durant's performance was spellbinding and magnificent. I have been watching NBA basketball for four decades, and I am familiar with the history of the game prior to that. This was not the most significant playoff performance that I have ever seen--that has to be reserved for Finals games, or elimination games in playoff rounds prior to the Finals--but in terms of pure dominance, deadly shooting from all areas of the court, all-around skill set mastery (including rebounding like a center and passing like a point guard), and will to win, this is one of the best playoff performances that I have ever seen. Somewhere around the moment that Durant crossed the 40 point barrier, I thought to myself, "Tonight, Durant is Jordan or Kobe. He is just not going to let the Nets lose." Not long after that, the Nets had a horrible possession during which Harden dribbled out most of the shot clock and did not run any recognizable play; with the shot clock about to expire, he lobbed the ball to Durant, who promptly went to work and buried a three pointer. (Side note: it is hilarious that Harden got an assist on the play after wasting almost the whole possession and then passing to Durant--who had to create his own shot with no "assist" from Harden in any meaningful sense of the word--but that play is just one illustration of why statistics are often misleading, and I will have more to say on that topic in an article that will be posted shortly). Harden deserves some credit for logging so many minutes while nursing an injury, but anyone who ever argues that he is even close to being as valuable as Durant needs to be slapped silly and called goofy; not only is Durant much more valuable based on size, skill set, and mentality, it is tempting to say it was difficult to tell how injured Harden was just based on his numbers: although he has had a couple good performances in game fives with the series tied 2-2, Harden has also had 11 points on 4-10 field goal shooting, nine points on 4-8 field goal shooting, and 19 points on 5-21 field goal shooting. So, five points on 1-10 field goal shooting is not shocking, and he is fortunate that he can now be the third option riding Durant's coattails however far two-time Finals MVP Durant can carry this team.
Labels: Brooklyn Nets, Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Harden, Jeff Green, Kevin Durant, Milwaukee Bucks
posted by David Friedman @ 12:38 AM
4 Comments:
Your point about Harden's 'assist' to Durant is a great one, and part of the reason assists should always been taken with a grain of salt when evaluating performance. It would be interesting to see how different play would be without most statistics being officially measured and scrutinised to high heaven (rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, etc, basically anything that isn't points and shooting percentages). What do you think of the FIBA rule for assists being granted if the shooting player is fouled and makes at least one free throw?
Just wanted to also say thanks for your reporting, it's always interesting to read. I always selfishly hope to see more commentary on the Jazz!
Bread:
It could be argued that every statistic other than free throw percentage is subjective and/or open to interpretation, but assists are particularly subjective.
I am not in favor of awarding an assist if a shooing player is fouled and makes at least one free throw because that would make historical comparisons of assists even less meaningful than they already are. Perhaps a separate category could be created for such plays, but I am not sure that we need additional statistics.
Glad that you enjoy my writing. I don't focus on a particular team or player, but if the Jazz continue to advance in the playoffs (and I expect them to at least make it to the NBA Finals) then I will definitely write more articles about them.
Marcel
Kevin durant got to be top 15 all time
He had 49 points 17 reb 10 assists
In 48 minutes
He prob is the most efficient player maybe ever and arguably the greatest scorer ever
Easy money sniper
Is his name for a reason
That one of the goat games ever
Kd is moving towards the jordan lebron kobe stratosphere
I dont think he quite there yet but this is 3 rings in 5 years if he wins ring
That incredible he played unbelievable
Jeff green was great as well
Giannis cant shoot and cant be a superstar till he does. He great in the paint but his lack of jumpshot hurts his team
Bucks coach is terrible
No double on kd, never took advantage of mismatches
I concede ur right about james harden David
I wouldnt take him over klay bosh parish etc
I would in reg season but not post season
If he played 46 min he wasnt that hurt
How u look like a all time great in reg season but barely a all star in post season and pivitol game
He makes bonehead passes and descions in clutch moments its like they would of won by more without him
He passes way to casual its annoying taking horrible step back 3 in post season
Wth
But its prob gonna go seven now this been a great series so far
Marcel:
Durant is fantastic. I have long been reluctant to add anyone to my Pantheon but if there is anyone from the past 15 years or so who I would consider adding he would be at the top of the list.
Giannis is a superstar. Durant outplayed him, but Giannis is still a superstar. When Bird outplayed Magic or Magic outplayed Bird that did not make the other guy not a superstar--which is not to say that Giannis is as great as either of those guys, but the point is that when two MVPs face each other in a playoff series someone has to lose. I agree that Giannis should improve his outside shot but he is essentially a post player/inside player even though he handles the ball on the perimeter. I believe that a dominant inside player can still lead a team to a title, but he needs the right supporting cast and the right coaching staff. Shaq was the most dominant paint player of his era but he did not win a title every season; he won titles when he was part of a great one-two punch (first with Kobe, then with Wade) and when he had Hall of Fame coaching (first from Jackson, then from Riley). Giannis has worked very hard on his body and on his game, and he seems like a great teammate, so I hope that he and the Bucks figure things out at some point.
Regarding Harden, to paraphrase the late, great Dennis Green, "He is who we thought he was and the Bucks let him off the hook." Harden is talented and he puts up big regular season numbers but you cannot consistently rely on him in the playoffs. If Irving can come back and Harden can be the third guy then I think he can handle that role (Green is a solid vet but he is not going to consistently score 27 points, so the Nets need another second option or else second option by committee until Irving returns).
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