On August 30, Beijing time, the Bucks defeated the Magic 118-104, and eliminated the opponents 4-1 in the series to reach the Eastern Conference semifinals, and the next round of the Bucks' opponents are the Heat, who have been resting for many days. Bucks second-in-command Middleton contributed a quasi-triple-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists in this game, playing 20+10 in two consecutive games. Middleton's recovery has also given the Bucks more confidence to qualify for the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Middleton is the most important helper around Brother Alphabet, and his scoring, organization of the offense and defense are all important to the Bucks. Especially in the next round against the Heat, the confrontation between Middleton and heat warrior Jimmy Butler is very important.
Butler now plays the small forward position, right up to Middleton, with Butler at the heart of the Heat. The Bucks should take multiple turns to take care of Butler, but Middleton will be one of the main candidates.
Middleton must not only play on the defensive end, but also continue the performance of the last two games on the offensive end, thus depleting Butler.
Middleton was sluggish in the first two games of the playoffs, shooting 4-of-12 in the first game and 1-of-8 in the second. Fortunately, he gradually regained his form, and in the third game he contributed 17 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. In game four, Middleton played 21 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists. He shot 7-of-16 from the field, 3-of-8 from three-point range, and contributed 21 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists and 1 steal.
Middleton averaged 20.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game during the regular season, shooting 49.7 percent from the field, 41.5 percent from three-point range and 91.6 percent from the free throw line, unfortunately 0.3 percentage points worse than the shooting percentage, otherwise he would have made it to the 180 club.
Last summer, the Bucks gave Middleton a five-year, $178 million contract, hoping he would be the most reliable helper around Brother Alphabet. His performance in the regular season is in line with this status, and his performance in games four and five in the first round of the playoffs is also in line with the second boss. In an interview after the game, Alphabet Brother and Middleton stood together, which also highlighted the status of the two in the Bucks.
At present, there are data websites that give the Bucks a 79% chance of advancing, but the Eastern Conference semifinals opponents heat is a team that is much stronger than the Magic, and if the Bucks want to qualify, it is absolutely impossible to rely on the alphabet brother alone, and the two giants of the Bucks need to play hand in hand, especially the confrontation between Middleton and Butler is very important.