Suns bothered by Bucks’ length, ball pressure in losing effort on road
Jan 22, 2018, 9:09 PM
Phoenix Suns forward Josh Jackson, left, is defended by Milwaukee Bucks guard Tony Snell, right, during the second half of an NBA basketball game Monday, Jan. 22, 2018, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Darren Hauck)
(AP Photo/Darren Hauck)
Under interim head coach Jay Triano, the Phoenix Suns have been relying on off-ball motion while the ball-handler stands still and watches the action unfold, waiting for the passing window to open.
It’s the primary way Triano finds T.J. Warren scoring opportunities within 14 feet, gets Alex Len and Dragan Bender more involved as passers and so on.
So, when the Suns were in Milwaukee Monday night, the Bucks had a clear game plan to pressure those ball-handlers and force the Suns to deal with length.
The result was 21 costly Phoenix turnovers in a 109-105 loss.
Following the firing of head coach Jason Kidd, the Bucks came out in front of their home crowd to prove a point with their energy levels.
Nearly every touch of the ball by a Suns player or flash off a screen was met by hands in passing lanes and pressure on the ball-handler, something the Suns simply could not get deal with.
The Prez scores in transition!!#FearTheDeer pic.twitter.com/mU9OabLNf1
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) January 23, 2018
Watch the bottom of the screen below, where Greg Monroe prepares a screen for Warren with the entire middle of the key open.
Middleton on both ends of the floor!!#FearTheDeer pic.twitter.com/mOG9TXkib3
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) January 23, 2018
Dragan Bender plans to receive the ball at the top of the key, turn and fire a pass on the move to Warren, who has been very productive in these sets all year.
Instead, even someone at Bender’s size is overwhelmed by the pressure, and Khris Middleton picks up a steal and free points, a theme of Milwaukee’s success that got them the win.
This won’t come as a surprise, but the one player who did the best against Milwaukee’s defensive pressure was Jared Dudley, who had a season-high nine assists against one of his former teams.
Along with this fancy dime off a steal, he was the only Suns big to have real success as a provider in the traditional Triano offense.
We have this on repeat and can’t understand how that pass from Dudley to Booker was so smooth… MAGIC!#SunsAt50 pic.twitter.com/XEXL4pvIzM
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) January 23, 2018
Monroe had another good game against the team that traded him to Phoenix — along with a protected first-round pick — for Eric Bledsoe, ending up with 19 points.
Bledsoe wound up with 19 points and seven assists, but the story of the game would be Middleton and Malcolm Brogdon.
Middleton, after scoring 40 in the teams’ first meeting in Phoenix, once again killed the Suns.
He finished with 35 points, shooting 13-of-19 from the field and consistently hitting step-back jumpers down the stretch.
Step 🔙 ✌️!#FearTheDeer pic.twitter.com/7tmaEUyKfM
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) January 23, 2018
Brogdon was the most efficient of the bunch, shooting 11-of-14 and finishing with a career-high 32 points.
It was a notable struggle for Devin Booker shooting the ball.
He finished 2-of-14, making it his first game in over a year in which he finished with less than three made field goals. Even still, he managed to get to the line enough to finish with 14 points and dished out eight assists.
UP NEXT
The Suns will be in Indiana on Wednesday, taking on the Pacers at 5 p.m. You can listen live on ESPN 620 AM.
The first installment was one of the worst losses of the year for Phoenix under Triano. A 120-97 defeat on Jan. 14 in Phoenix was one of Booker’s worst games of the season, as Victor Oladipo consistently gave him trouble as his main defender and the Suns dropped another game without Warren.
The game marks the end of a four-game road trip, with the Suns returning home on Friday.
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