The NBA Playoffs in the bubble continue to surprise. The Miami Heat finished what they started and knocked off the Milwaukee Bucks. And Rajon Rondo is still a major factor for a playoff team. Who would’ve guessed that? He was key in the Lakers taking a lead over the Rockets. Here’s what you need to know from last night.
Heat Outlast Scrappy Bucks to Knock Milwaukee Out of the Playoffs
It wasn’t a pretty ending to the Heat-Bucks second-round series, but maybe that’s how it was supposed to be.
After all, it was hard to see how Milwaukee could overcome Miami in Game 5 with Giannis Antetoukounmpo out with a sprained ankle. And despite scrapping and sticking around as much as they could, they eventually fell 103-94, and the Heat knock out the number one seed in the NBA Playoffs.
And as the score indicated, it was defense that controlled this game. Particularly Miami’s defense that put the clamps on the Giannis-less Bucks. Milwaukee ended up shooting 37 percent from the field and 29 percent from three-point range. For the most part, Khris Middleton was held in check, scoring just 23 points after going for 36 in Game 4.
There’s an argument to be made that even with the Heat’s incredible defense and Middleton’s struggles, if the Bucks got even a decent game from Eric Bledsoe, they should’ve won this game. Bledsoe finished with 9 points on 2-12 shooting. He finishes the playoffs averaging 11.6 PPG on 38.7 percent from the field and 25 percent from three.
There are going to be a lot of discussions surrounding the Bucks moving forward. What does the future hold for Giannis Antetokounmpo? Will Mike Budenholzer be back next season? I think there needs to be a long look taken at the Bucks front office because the roster just wasn’t built for a title run. Would keeping Malcolm Brogdon have made the Bucks a championship team? Hard to say. But it absolutely would’ve made them more competitive in this series.
As for the Heat, they finish out a series they controlled from the beginning, but the past two games can’t make them incredibly happy. For the second game in a row, Miami’s offense just didn’t look quite right. I put the onus of that on Jimmy Butler. For all the talk we heard after Game 1 of this series about “Playoff Jimmy,” he just hasn’t asserted himself scoring the ball for most of this series. Butler finished with 17 points in Game 5 but only took six field goals. Yes, he made things happen in other aspects of the game, but that’s his third game in the series, scoring less than 20 points, and all three games were decided by nine points or less. I think Butler will have to be more assertive against the defenses of either Boston or Toronto for Miami to win in the Eastern Conference Finals.
It’s clear, though, that Miami has an elite defense and a deep team of outstanding shooters. And the way they controlled the team with the best record in the NBA, the Heat have to be the early favorite of the remaining teams in the East to go to the finals. They will be a tough out for whoever they play going forward, which includes the teams in the West because the Heat clearly have Championship aspirations.
Rajon Rondo Key in Lakers Game 3 Win
Count the next sentence as one I never thought I’d type.
Rajon Rondo is balling out in the 2020 NBA Playoffs.
It doesn’t make sense, I don’t know where it came from, but it’s happening. And it couldn’t have come at a better time for the Lakers.
In the Lakers Game 3 win over the Rockets, LeBron James and Anthony Davis did what they usually do. LeBron, looking as ageless as ever, finished with 36 points, 5 assists, and 4blocks. AD chipped in 26 points, and 15 rebounds.
But outside of L.A.’s big two, they weren’t getting much from the remainder of the roster. That is, of course, until Boston Celtics Rajon Rondo showed up. Entering the 4th quarter, the game was tied 82-82. And then Rondo went off. He put up 12 points and 5 assists in the fourth, leading the Lakers to a 112-102 win. Rondo even hit two threes in the fourth quarter and three total in the game. He was everywhere in the second half, and it propelled the Lakers.
These playoffs have been unpredictable, but this loss seems pretty deflating for the Rockets. Russell Westbrook looked much better, and up until the fourth quarter, they looked like they could take a 2-1 lead in the series.
Robert Covington also took a horrible looking elbow to the face in the fourth quarter; he left for the game. Hopefully, he’s healthy for the rest of the series because he’s been huge for Houston in this postseason.
Now with a 2-1 lead heading into Game 4, the momentum looks to be in the Lakers’ favor, but they’ll need their role players to continue to step up to keep that momentum going.
For even more breakdown of the NBA Playoffs, listen to the NBA Morning Deuce, Belly Up Sports’ newest Daily NBA Podcast. The deuce covers everything you need to know from the night and day before in the association. Episodes are available by 6 am Monday through Friday where you listen to podcasts.
One More Message From the NBA Morning Deuce Boys – NBA Morning Deuce
Follow me on twitter@JosephRLevin and for more great NBA content checkout Belly Up Sports NBA.
