2 weeks Ago
The Milwaukee Bucks were basically run off the court in Game 1 of their playoff series against the Indiana Pacers. While the team did make a last-minute comeback effort, the game was pretty much over at that point. Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo was special in Game 1, putting up 36 points, 13 rebounds, and two blocks.
But the problem was that Antetokounmpo was really the only player on Milwaukee who showed up. The Bucks couldn't muster much of anything on the offensive end of the floor, and it doomed them on the court. Milwaukee was especially hurt by the poor performance of forward Kyle Kuzma in the game.
More Bucks news: Bucks' Kyle Kuzma Makes Unfortunate NBA History in Game 1 vs Pacers Kuzma didn't score a single point in the game, and his performance caused all sorts of issues. The veteran shot 0-of-5 from the field (0-of-2 shooting from distance) and 0-of-2 shooting from the free throw line, zero rebounds, zero assists, zero steals, zero blocks. Bucks head coach Doc Rivers reacted to this performance, giving an honest assessment on the matter.
Rivers seemed to defend his player, saying that he didn't get very many shot attempts. "It's hard to score when you don't touch the ball," Bucks coach Doc Rivers said . "I mean, Kyle had two shots in the first half, both with two seconds on the shot clock.
So, like, Kuzma can play. But we gotta involve him. And we gotta make sure we keep him involved.
" The play of Kuzma was historically bad, and it hurt the Bucks in Game 1. Kuzma also seemed to suffer an injury during the first quarter of the game, potentially impacting his production throughout the contest. More Bucks news: Bucks' Kyle Kuzma Suffered Apparent Injury in Game 1 The Bucks didn't lose the game only because of Kuzma, but he didn't help things.
Milwaukee is going to need a much better team effort in Game 2 if they want to even this playoff series up. The hope is that Kuzma learns from his mistakes in Game 1 to better help the team win. They are going to need him throughout the remainder of the series if they want to advance.
More Bucks: Nuggets’ Michael Malone Firing Has Instant Impact on Doc Rivers’ Bucks Future Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo Raises Eyebrows with Game 2 Comments For more news and notes on the Milwaukee Bucks, visit Milwaukee Bucks on SI ..
