One-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo was out. Back spasms.
“Dame Time?” Stopped ticking with Damian Lillard feeling too far under the weather to face the Bulls on Monday.
At least on paper, more Milwaukee Bambis than Bucks.
That’s exactly what made Bulls coach Billy Donovan nervous leading up to the game at the United Center. Yes, the visiting team was undermanned, but Milwaukee was also fresh off winning the NBA in-season tournament cup, as well as going 14-4 over their last 18 games. Even with their two best players sidelined it was a dangerous matchup.
The Bulls found out just how treacherous it was, as Milwaukee shot the Bulls out of the gym from the first quarter on, winning 112-91
So much for an in-season tournament hangover.
“That tournament is tough,” Donovan said. “It can take a lot out of you as long as it is, and there’s a lot of intensity towards it. I think going into it and the way they were playing, you’d have to consider them playing as well as anybody in the league.”
Which proved to be true almost right from the tip-off.
While the Bulls (13-17) can shoot the three-pointer with as much volume as anyone, the Bucks showed them the difference between shooting them and making them, going 6-of-12 from three-point range in that opening stanza, while the Bulls went just 3-of-15.
Just like that the home team found itself down 33-17, and the hole was only about to get deeper. Milwaukee (16-12) actually built the lead up to 23 by the second quarter and went into the halftime locker room shooting a blistering 46% (11-of-24) from beyond the arc.
A theme that didn’t go away. By the time the final horn sounded, the Bucks finished the night 18-of-43 (42%) from three, while the Bulls were an abysmal 10-of-48 (20.8%).
“An ass whoopin’,” Bulls guard Zach LaVine said of the night. “We didn’t shoot the ball very well. We tried to compete. We just didn’t shoot the ball well, and sometimes that happens. You got to try and find other ways to keep it competitive and win.”
Which was never found.
If there was a positive in Donovan’s eyes it was that they did stick to who they were as far as pushing the pace and generating good looks.
“I really appreciated that they tried to stick to our identity when our identity wasn’t going very well,” Donovan said. “I thought we were playing fast, I thought we moved the ball, I thought we generated a lot of good shots, and we didn’t make some shots.
“We did have some blown coverages. We can be better in terms of the communication piece, but overall I think that’s what we’ve got to do is when something is not working identity-wise and you’re doing the right things, you’ve still got to be able to play that way.”
There was some life for the Bulls in the third, cutting the deficit to just eight with 4:24 left in the quarter thanks to a Dalen Terry layup. It was almost like Milwaukee said enough is enough, however, and the hot shooting commenced with the lead quickly back up to 20 entering the fourth.
A reminder that the Bucks have some serious depth, and so much for that slow start out of the gate when the regular season tipped off.
“I don’t hear a lot of people talking about how they started the season anymore, so it shows what type of team they are,” LaVine added. “It’s discouraging when you go (10-for-48), but that’s the identity we started with in training camp and you’re not just going to go away from it. Live and die with it.”
