Lillard hits milestone, Giannis has triple-double as Bucks beat Spurs 132-119
The Milwaukee Bucks broke their pregame huddle before running out onto the court Tuesday night with a mandate: Don’t play with your food.
They didn’t for the most part, cruising to a 132-119 victory over San Antonio at Fiserv Forum. It was the Bucks’ fifth straight victory as they improved to 20-7. The Spurs lost for the 20th time in their last 21 games to fall to 4-22.
“These are not easy games to play but I thought we took care of business,” Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin said. “I thought everyone contributed on this one.”
The pregame edict wasn’t arrogance by the Bucks, but merely stating a fact. The Spurs came in as one of the worst teams in the NBA with just four wins and star rookie Victor Wembanyama out injured. There was no reason for the Bucks to lose, let alone let the Spurs hang around in the game.
So, Milwaukee effectively ended the game in the opening eight minutes after taking a 27-9 lead and led by as many as 22. The Bucks did build a mashed potato volcano and push the peas around late in the second quarter and early third as the Spurs cut the deficit to eight, but the Bucks immediately went on a 15-6 run to once again lead comfortably.
“I think anytime you get into a game like this with a team that’s on a losing streak, their best player is out, those are the trap games where a team like this who’s really well coached, you know they’re not going to come out and just lay off,” Lillard said. “They play with a lot of pace, they move the ball, they cut hard, everything they do they do it with purpose.
"If you try to ease into a game against a team like that, you can find yourself down by 15 and it has nothing to do with ability or who is on the floor, it’s just the way that they play and the way that they’re coached. Setting a tone and establishing ourself in the beginning was extremely important.”
BOX SCORE: Bucks 132, Spurs 119
Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded the 37th triple-double of his career with a 16-assist, 14-rebound, 11-point effort. The assist total is a career-high and it was his second triple-double of the season. Bobby Portis scored 23 off the bench and Khris Middleton (17) and Brook Lopez (14) also reached double figures.
Keldon Johnson led the Spurs with 28 points.
Damian Lillard scores 20,000 career points
With his third basket of the game – which was part of a 19-point first quarter – Damian Lillard became the 51st player in NBA history (and eighth active player) to reach the 20,000-point mark. Of the 43 retired players, 37 are in the Hall of Fame.
"I mean, I don’t want to fake downplay it like it’s nothing," he said. "I know it’s a big deal. It’s a great accomplishment. It’s a rare space to be in. In the history of this league to have only 51 players accomplish something like that, I think that speaks for itself. And I look at what led up to it, all the things that I think of in high school and college and the doubt that I faced over the course of my career before the NBA.
"What I wasn’t supposed to be. What I wasn’t supposed to accomplish. And just my mentality through all those things. Sometimes you don’t really see the light at the end of the tunnel. You just gotta have that faith in yourself."
Lillard is one of a dozen of those 51 to have Milwaukee ties, either by playing at Marquette University (Dwyane Wade), playing for the city’s original NBA team (Bob Pettit) and being drafted by (Dirk Nowitzki) or playing for the Bucks.
The 33-year-old point guard surpassed the milestone in style, too, with his first 40-point effort in a Bucks uniform. He made 7 of his 12 three-pointers and 14 of 22 shots overall and 5 of 5 free throws. He also handed out four assists.
On Dec. 13 Lillard became the No. 5 all-time three-point shooter in league history, passing Kyle Korver in made threes.
Adrian Griffin, who game-planned against Lillard as an opposing assistant coach prior to this year broke down why Lillard is such a unique scorer.
"Obviously he can shoot the ball, he can stretch the floor, he just puts a lot of pressure on your defense," the Bucks' head coach began. "If you bring your bigs up he can drive around them, he’s strong enough and physical enough to finish at the rim. He just has no weaknesses on the offensive end. He has the midrange. He can shoot it from deep.
"Depending on your coverages, if you put two on the ball then he’s a willing passer. Just through that he can stretch the floor and shoot ‘em deep, you gotta adjust. Then he has the quickness and the physicality to kind of turn the corner. He just puts a lot of pressure on the defense. I’ve tried many times in the past where I’ve had to scout Portland and you just gotta run bodies at him. That’s just the only way.
"You can’t guard him one-on-one. You can’t really guard him two-on-two in pick-and-rolls. You gotta just keep sending two, three bodies at him at all times.
Bucks offense continues to set tone
The Bucks still want to improve defensively (20th defensive rating, 23rd in defensive scoring heading into Tuesday night) but for now their offense is doing a great job at providing an assist in that regard. The sample size remains small at this juncture of the season but these numbers are beginning to look more like trends than anomalies:
9-1 when having equal or more assists than an opponent (a season-high 34 vs. 27 for the Spurs).
14-0 when scoring 30 or more points in the first quarter (the Bucks scored season-best 44 in the opening frame).
16-1 when ahead or tied at the half (they led 72-59 at the break, scoring 10 points off San Antonio turnovers and 20 off the fast break).
16-1 when scoring 120 points or more.
20-4 when scoring 50 or more points in the first half.
And in their 10 games heading into Tuesday – as the offense coalesced even more – the Bucks have seen their defense rank 11th in the NBA with a 115.0 rating (points allowed per 100 possessions).
“When you take care of the ball and you take good shots and your teammates know where those shots are coming from, most of the time you can get good floor balance and sprint back and get your defense set,” Griffin said about offense helping defense.
“I think when you turn the ball over obviously it’s difficult. That’s why you want to take care of the ball. I think your shot selection also (can help). Sometimes when your teammates don’t know you’re taking those shots you’re catching them by surprise so to speak nd its hard to sprint back also. So, your offense dictates a lot initially, especially transition defense, getting your defense set, getting them into halfcourt. If they have to take the ball out (of the basket), allows us to get our defense set.”
Pat Connaughton back in the flow
Pat Connaughton played his third game after missing six straight with a foot injury suffered against Miami back on Nov. 28. Connaughton stepped on Heat center Bam Adebayo in that game and not only rolled his right ankle but suffered a bone bruise on the inside of his foot.
“When I twisted it, the outside – like a typical ankle sprain – can take awhile but it wasn’t that bad,” he told the Journal Sentinel. “The two bones on the inside, my foot and my ankle, banged together and I had a bone bruise and those are just time. It takes a minute for them to be less sensitive. I still feel it now but it’s not as bad as it was and I can deal with (expletive).
In his first 18 games Connaughton was shooting 33.9% from behind the three-point line and 42% overall in 23 minutes per game. Over the last three he’s been worked back in averaging 15.6 minutes.
“I try to tailor it toward what’s needed in the game,” he said after shootaround of how he thinks about returning from injuries. “From a physical standpoint it’s just about making sure I can go out there and perform without feeling too sore, without feeling like it’s hindering my abilities.
“It’s just about trying to make sure I find ways to impact winning, no matter what end of the floor it’s on.”
Five numbers
4 Double-doubles on the season for Bobby Portis after recording 23 points and 10 rebounds. It is his second in his last three games, also.
10 Second violation called on Giannis Antetokounmpo while attempting the first of two free throws with 3 minutes, 36 seconds left in the first half. It was the second time he has been called for taking too long at the free throw line.
14 Consecutive wins at Fiserv Forum for the Bucks, their longest in the arena and most since ripping off 20 straight at the Bradley Center from April 19, 1990-Jan. 8, 1991.
16 Straight games played for Antetokounmpo, his longest streak since playing 31 in a row during the 2020-21 championship season (Jan. 11-March 20, 2021).
57 Lillard’s shooting percentage the last three games (36 for 41), which included a 52.9% mark from behind the three-point line (18 for 34). He’s found something of late, as he shot 41.9% overall and 34.6% from behind the arc in his first 22 games. Lillard has also gone 22 for 23 from the free throw line over the last three contests.
'Enjoy the journey': Giannis again talks philosophically after setting franchise rebounding record
Victor Wembanyama ruled out for Spurs
The Spurs ruled the No. 1 pick out on Monday evening with right ankle soreness. He played 31 minutes against New Orleans on Sunday, scoring 17 points, pulling down 13 rebounds and blocking four shots. It is the first game he will miss since Dec. 1 and just the second all season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo on Victor Wembanyama: ‘Sky’s the limit’
Antetokounmpo didn’t come into the NBA from Greece as the most celebrated international prospect in basketball history. He didn’t arrive measured at the 7-feet he is now. He didn’t begin his career in Milwaukee with heavy expectations.
But he must be considered as one of the greatest player development stories in league history after starting his career at 18 years old, 6 feet, 9 inches tall and (generously) listed at 210 pounds and turning into a two-time league MVP that is one of the most athletic, dominant big men the sport has ever seen.
Antetokounmpo is 12th all-time in triple-doubles and became the true archetype for what the “point forward” position could be. He is unstoppable in transition, can initiate offense yet also can work the midrange while bending rims at will.
It’s through this lens that many view the potential of Wembanyama, the 7-4 French teenager headlining the rebuilding Spurs. The 19-year-old is a more polished professional than Antetokounmpo was coming out of Europe, and he was immediately handed the keys to the franchise upon being drafted.
Everything the Spurs do is centered around his development.
And naturally, Antetokounmpo’s opinion on the phenom has been sought.
But the Bucks star has demurred, saying on a couple of occasions that he does not watch basketball – or highlights – so he’s not sure what Wembanyama does or can do in the NBA. But, even he couldn’t escape the hype because he’s heard his teammates talk about the Frenchman.
Earlier in the year, a French reporter relayed to Antetokounmpo that the Spurs coaches likened their development plan to Antetokounmpo’s, that they wanted Wembanyama to be “uncomfortable” by playing different positions, to figure out things on his own on the court.
“I feel like in my career just being able to play multiple positions helped me,” Antetokounmpo admitted. “Coming into the league, starting as a, what was I, a four-man? Second year I was more of a shooting guard. Third year I was a point guard. Then just keep going. I don’t know what I am today. I just try to be a basketball player and try fit in wherever I can. But for sure, being uncomfortable will definitely help him.”
Antetokounmpo then revealed he did see Wembanyama play in person in Lyon, France – in the 2021-22 French LNB Pro A league season when his younger brother, Kostas, was Wembanyama’s teammate with Asvel Villeurbanne.
“He has a lot of talent,” Antetokounmpo said of the Spurs rookie. “I saw that he had a lot of potential. He can play any spot he choose to play. He’s a basketball player. He’s a mismatch wherever you put him on the floor. For him, he’s just got to be disciplined, stay healthy and – the most important thing – keep on enjoying the game. The sky’s the limit for him. He can become whatever he wants to become in this league. He has a lot of talent.”
Bucks schedule
After playing the Spurs, the Bucks host the Orlando Magic on Thursday to conclude their five-game homestand. They then head on the road for four games.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Lillard hits milestone, Giannis has triple-double as Bucks beat Spurs 132-119
