Without Giannis Antetokounmpo, 'frustrated' Bucks lose 117-111 to Raptors
The NBA playoffs are around the corner, and Milwaukee Bucks have hit the skids at an inopportune time as they’ve now lost five of six and three in a row after a disappointing 117-111 loss to the woeful Toronto Raptors on Friday night at Fiserv Forum.
The Raptors had come into the game having lost 15 in a row. They improved to 24-53 overall.
“The last three were against pretty bad teams," Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said flatly. "And, to me, that’s inexcusable. For all of us."
Milwaukee, which could have clinched a playoff spot with a win, dropped to 47-30.
The Bucks have now lost games to three of the eight-worst teams in the league over the last four days, dropping contests to Washington and Memphis before the loss to Toronto.
Box score: Raptors 117, Bucks 111
“I’m frustrated. And they're frustrated. I guess that’s the good thing," Rivers said. "But that’s not going to get you anywhere. Frustration gets you nowhere. We gotta work ourselves through this. You can feel it. You literally can. You can feel it during the game. And, you go through these things. I’ve been through ‘em. You do. And you gotta work yourself out of ‘em. Even one of the officials sad it, man, you can feel the heaviness of your team right now. I said yeah. And that happens. But we have to play ourselves through it.”
Pat Connaughton acknowledged that there is “too much” frustration among the players currently, and that the team needs to find a bit more joy in the process of what they’re trying to accomplish.
“We lose three games in a row the way we have against the opponents we have, it’s frustrating,” Khris Middleton said. “You don’t want to disrespect any of those guys on the other side but when you look at it, we should be able to handle these teams. Especially what we’re fighting for. We’re fighting for the bigger picture.
"So it’s frustrating that we dropped these three games, didn’t create separation, but also we need to find ways to get ourselves better, get ourselves prepared to play against these type of teams.”
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Damian Lillard led the Bucks with 36 points and six assists while Middleton had 21 points and six assists. Bobby Portis had 19 points and 10 rebounds off the bench while Brook Lopez added 15 points. Five players reached double figures for Toronto, led by Gary Trent Jr.'s 31 points. Immanuel Quickley had 25 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists.
“I think it’s frustrating because we just so much better than that," Lillard said of the Bucks' recent stretch of play. "Not to take anything away from those teams, because they’re NBA teams at the end of the day, and you let guys start to believe and it can get dangerous out there and I think that’s what happened in all three of the games.
"But at the end of the day, I just feel like we a lot better than that. We a more mature and responsible team than we’ve shown by allowing these games to get to the points that they’ve gotten to and then put ourselves in a dogfight and give it a chance to end this way. But it’s part of the game. Nobody wants to hear that. But it’s part of the game. I feel like it’s a type of pain that gets a team together, you know?
"I just told Brook I haven’t experienced like, losing three in a row to like, the worst teams by record in the league. But I’ve had a similar experience a few times where it was like end of the season, you’re like man, what are we doing? What the hell’s going on? I think we all have that feeling. But it’s not a lack of effort or care. It seems like it’s not bouncing our way right now. Sometimes when you try so hard to turn it around you end up staying in that rut. It continues to be a battle. But it’s darkest before dawn and I think we just gotta keep pushing forward. We know what we’re capable of. We know that this is unacceptable, you know what I’m saying? But it’s not like we can go back and change the game at this point, so we gotta get it together. We got to push it to where it needs to be before the season is done.”
Damian Lillard, Andre Jackson Jr. get no rest to lead Bucks comeback
Lillard played the entire third quarter and Andre Jackson Jr. played the final 5:26 of the frame, and the rookie’s insertion into the lineup with AJ Green, Portis and Connaughton helped the Bucks come back from a 14-point deficit.
Trailing 77-63 at that point, Jackson Jr. was subbed in to provide some defensive intensity and the Bucks gradually whittled the deficit down to three points before trailing 90-85 going into the fourth.
“He changed the game for us," Middleton said of the rookie. "He got us back into the game, changed the momentum on our side. Without him I think, you know, it could’ve been a double-digit loss. But with him in it we were able to bounce back. Came up a little bit short but he had a great night. I hope he looks at this, boosts his confidence and realize he can help us on any night.”
But Rivers did not sub out Lillard and kept that group on the floor the entire fourth quarter, save for Middleton exchanging for Green at points. Portis and Connaughton also played the entire fourth quarter.
“I knew we needed to win the game -- that was kind of my mentality and I wanted to be out there for it," Lillard said of playing nearly the entire second half. "But I think he stuck with that group because we was on the little run. We got back into the game from being down double digits to taking the lead at one point. I think he just rode that group, you know.”
Though that group fell behind again by as many as eight early in the fourth, a Lillard layup gave the Bucks a 98-97 lead with 7 minutes, 32 seconds left.
The Bucks would lead again briefly at 102-101, but the group couldn't quite get over the finish line.
“I stayed with the group that was playing hard," Rivers said. "And that was the message. I said it at halftime: I’m playing whoever plays the hardest. And that group deserved to play on the floor.”
Lillard fouled out with 1:48 to go and the Bucks trailing 108-106 and was replaced by Malik Beasley.
The Bucks had a chance to tie or go ahead with 20 seconds left when Middleton crossed up Raptors big man Kelly Olynyk. But rather than take the open midrange jumper to try and tie it, Middleton stepped back for a wide-open three-point attempt. Unfortunately it missed long, and the Raptors made their free throws to seal the game.
“I felt Kelly trying to cut me off on the drive, so I tried to stop, create some type of separation," Middleton said. "It’s a shot that I think I normally don’t really step back for three, but I think I was close to the line. I created a good bit of separation so I tired to take one more extra dribble to get there. I thought it was a great look, it just didn’t go down.”
Jackson Jr. played the final 16:13 of the game, pulling down four rebounds, scoring three points and handing out one assist.
“I think a lot of times you have your lowest points you come ready the next time," he said. "I think last time I was out there (against Memphis on April 3) I played very poorly. I wasn’t aggressive, I was thinking too much. So, I just told myself going into the next game I’m going to be ready, whether that’s today or 20 games from now. I was just trying to keep my mindset to just get lost in the game, play in the moment. I think that’s the most powerful thing is not focusing on the score or necessarily points or anything, just try and go there and let the game tell you what to do.”
Added Rivers: "I’m going to say this. He stood out for a lot of reasons. Not because he was the best athlete. He stood out because he was just playing so darn hard. And that shouldn’t stand out. But that stood out. And that tells you, that told me something about us and something that I have to do better.”
Bucks sleepy start helps Raptors
Despite not having Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks fielded the rest of their starting lineup with Jae Crowder filling out the group. Connaughton and Portis were first off the bench as usual, also.
Yet it took until the final minute of the first quarter for the Bucks to build a bit of a cushion, stretching a two-point lead to 27-21. After weathering an 8-0 Raptors run that made it 29-28, the Bucks looked like they finally found their footing and took a 40-30 lead with just over seven minutes to go in the second quarter.
But Toronto outscored them 28-14 the rest of the way – including an 18-5 stretch late in the quarter – to take a 58-54 lead into halftime.
The Bucks made just 28% of their first half threes compared to 40% by the Raptors, and Milwaukee scored nine points off eight Toronto turnovers. The Raptors, meanwhile, scored eight points off six Bucks giveaways.
Then in the first three minutes of the third quarter, the Raptors missed their first four shots and turned it over twice – but the Bucks gave it right back two times and made just one shot of their own. So instead of flipping the scoreboard, the Bucks still trailed by seven by the time RJ Barrett made the Raptors first basket.
"I told them, this is on me," Rivers said. "I gotta figure out what we gotta do to play at a higher pace. We started off the game, it was beautiful. I thought he first quarter. And as the game went on, you could just see it. Second and third quarter were crushers for us.”
Toronto would eventually build their lead to 14 points in the third quarter. Though Milwaukee would eventually take brief, one-point leads in the fourth quarter their slow start required too much energy late to truly overcome.
Damian Lillard returns after missing three games
Lillard returned after missing the last three games, the first being for personal reasons and the last two due to a strained right adductor muscle. Lillard said he first felt some tightness in the game against Los Angeles on March 26 and then again in the fourth quarter during the Bucks’ loss to New Orleans on March 28.
“Dame is huge for our team,” Bucks guard Malik Beasley said at shootaround on Friday. “He helps us out in tremendous ways with the space and being able to knock down shots if the spacing is bad. And then, he’s a point guard at heart. People consider him a shooting guard but he’s a point guard. He makes the right reads every time and we need him.”
Lillard returned against Toronto and looked like his usual dynamic self in terms of his movement, using quick steps off the dribble and on step-backs to create space.
He scored 36 points, handed out six assists and had five rebounds in 38 minutes of play before fouling out late in the fourth.
But it also looked like he hadn’t played in nearly a week at times also, with seven turnovers, and he missed 14 of his 24 shots.
It was a rare occasion the Bucks lost when he scored that many points, however, as the team is now 17-3 when he scores 30 or more.
Lillard makes history, top 50 in scoring and assists
Following a Toronto turnover out of bounds early in the third quarter, Lillard set up the Bucks offense and found Khris Middleton, who knocked down a midrange jumper.
With that assist, Lillard became part of an exclusive club of Hall of Famers (and future Hall of Famers) that rank in the top 50 all-time in scoring and assists.
The 33-year-old point guard passed Michael Jordan (5,633) and recently elected Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups (5,636) after dishing out six assists against Toronto, giving him 5,637 in his career.
He is now alone in 50th place all-time for assists.
Already No. 41 all-time in scoring with 21,071 career points, Lillard becomes just the 14th player to rank in the top 50 in both categories. Former Bucks legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson are part of the group as well.
Lillard is the sixth active player to reach the milestone, joining LeBron James, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Stephen Curry.
Milwaukee’s Ochai Agbaji gets start for Raptors
The 23-year-old guard started for the 14th time this season when he got the call to open the game for the Raptors. He had missed his last three games with a hip injury.
In 34 minutes, he had seven rebounds, three points and three assists to go with a steal.
Agbaji was born in Milwaukee but grew up in Kansas City and was the No. 14 pick of the 2022 draft by Cleveland.
He was traded to Utah before his rookie season began and played 59 games for the Jazz in his first year, averaging 7.9 points per game. He was dealt to Toronto at the trade deadline this season.
Five numbers
1-5 Bucks record in their last six games, their worst stretch since going 3-7 from Jan. 29-Feb. 15. They went 1-4 from Jan. 1-8.
15 More free throws the Raptors shot than the Bucks. Toronto was 31 for 36 while Milwaukee was 17 of 21
20:09 Playing time for Bucks center Brook Lopez, his fewest since playing 18:12 against Phoenix on March 17. It was the third fewest minutes he has played all season. He played 16:39 in a Nov. 1 loss at Toronto.
215 Made three-pointers by Malik Beasley this season. He is closing in on the single-season franchise mark of 229 held by Ray Allen (2001-02).
3/3/24 Date of the Raptors last victory, 111-106 over Charlotte. They last beat a team over .500 on Feb. 26 (Indiana).
Bucks playoff scenarios: More on team's magic number, schedule, 2024 Eastern Conference standings, bracket and record
Giannis Antetokounmpo misses game with hamstring injury
Giannis Antetokounmpo did not warm up before the game after he had been downgraded to doubtful to play vs. the Raptors with tendinopathy in his left hamstring. Tendinopathy is when there is swelling and/or pain in the tendons that attach the muscle to bone.
He began the day as questionable.
"We had shootaround, he went through it today," Rivers said before the Raptors game. "I do check now, where I never did before, 'how you feel?' And he didn't give me a 'great,' so then I usually say, well you should go talk to (medical) and he did and then he was out."
After the game on Wednesday, Rivers said thought about pulling Antetokounmpo on a couple of occasions, but the two-time MVP stayed in and played 32 minutes. He had one of his worst shooting nights of the season in going 10-for-23, and there were clear moments of discomfort:
He hit the floor in the second quarter when he was blocked by Memphis’ 6-foot, 7-inch forward Jake LaRavia. Antetokounmpo landed with both legs, but once he was on the ground he grimaced, grabbed the hamstring area and flexed his left leg several times before getting up. He then took a moment before the jump ball to bend deeply at the waist.
On his 14th shot of the first half, he drove in for what was a routinely explosive move to the rim but after making the shot he immediately grabbed his leg as he turned back up the court.
He grabbed at the hamstring again after completing a behind-the-back dribble into a layup three minutes into the third quarter.
"Things are not always going to be easy," Antetokounmpo said after the game. "It's easy to say I'm not going to play and I'm just going to sit. But I think it's the hardest to play through pain and keep on going. Not just to try to win, but also for yourself. Because I think it's going to help me in the long run."
Antetokounmpo missed games on March 17 and March 20 with the hamstring injury, which he said he first felt on March 10 in Los Angeles in a game against the Clippers. It was just the sixth game of the season the star has missed.
What is the Bucks magic number?
1 To clinch a playoff berth. Per the NBA, Milwaukee clinches at least the No. 6 seed with their next win.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Without Giannis, 'frustrated' Milwaukee Bucks lose 117-111 to Raptors
