The showdown in the East is really wonderful.
The giants in the East are exactly the year of playing, the team is basically cultivated from the beginning of the draft, the growth period and peak period are very long, they often meet in the playoffs, and they have developed to the present, and they have turned out to be "grievances".
In the past, the Bucks and Middleton were a hurdle that Boston couldn't cross. Among them, the second-in-command Middleton was directly in full shape as soon as he saw the Celtics, and the three-pointer and mid-range beat the Celtics into a bad situation. This time, the Bucks have one less All-Star, and they are the defending champions, the biggest rivals in the East, and if the Celtics can cross this hurdle, it is not without a chance to hit the Finals.
Middleton, a sharp blade in the middle distance
Before the Bucks lifted the championship trophy, Middleton thought it was the most important point in the lineup to improve.
Milwaukee is largely unattractive to free agents, so it's hard for them to make a difference in the free agent market. Middleton was the most powerful point outside of the alphabet brother at that time. The Bucks offered a big contract with natural hands, signing $178 million in the summer of 2019.
But as far as a 35 million - 40 million two-time boss, Middleton's problem is that the offensive means are single, and the shooting-based offense is not stable enough in the high-intensity playoffs. Alphabet Brother's impact is strong enough, but the ball holding and organization ability is not the same level as James, Middleton stumbled in some games, resulting in the Bucks not having a reliable possession point.
The problem was alleviated after Holliday's arrival.
Holliday, who plays as a guard, although not a point guard play during the Pelicans period. But it is stronger than Middleton in dribbling and carrying the ball, and at the same time, it is a tall and strong body in the defender, which can usually cause trouble for the opposite defender on the defensive end, which also complements Middleton, who is not strong enough defensively.
In the high-end round, Holliday organization, alphabet brother impact, Middleton mid-range and three-point line outside the cold arrow, the combination of the big three can be described as complementary. Now, facing the Celtics' forwards whose strength suddenly accelerated in the second half of the season, only alphabet brother and Holliday, still have to play a question mark in confrontation and firepower.
Celtic's biggest challenge: inside height
Without the biggest bugs in previous series, the Celtics should be able to face their opponents with confidence.
The biggest challenge they face here is how to deal with the Bucks' interior heights.
This season, the Celtics' change is that the team's defensive prowess has suddenly increased by a few steps, with direct winning streaks rising from 10th in the East to the top of the East.
At the same time, the Bucks have also changed a little from the past: At the beginning of the season, because of Da luo's injury, they put Portis in the starting lineup. In both the regular season and the playoffs, they were all members of the Bucks, and in their five-game victory over the Bulls series, Portis averaged 11.6 points and 11.4 rebounds per game, shooting 1.8 three-pointers from 36 percent of the field.
And the Celtics' interior line is not thick. This was already a problem against the Nets, but nash's obsession with a four-guard lineup allowed the Celtics' interior firepower to be fully opened. But with the Bucks, who are also good at basketball skills, this series is definitely a lot harder.
This series, even without Middleton, means that the Celtics' interior linemen have to face the triple impact of Alphabet Brother, Portis and Big Lowe, including both the dunk type under the basket and the type of containment outside the three-point line, which gives Horford and Robert Williams a big problem.
In the previous encounter, Horford's effect on defending the alphabet brother was very good, and the experience was in place while keeping up with the pace, and at one point in the first round, Durant could not open the situation. But can the older Horford once again withstand the onslaught of the defending champions? Clearly a determinant of the direction of the series.