Milwaukee Bucks: 3 takeaways from 2017-18 season opener

1. Setting the bar high

While the Bucks managed to shut down the Celtics’ new superstar who finds himself on a team now in a troubled and confused season just two games in, they never played down. Last season, the Milwaukee Bucks finished fourth in the league in field goal percentage, and may look to finish there once more if not better this year.

On Wednesday night, the Bucks shot for 50 percent as a team from the field despite making just 33.3 percent of their 3-pointers.

More importantly, they finished 19th in the league in free throw percentage with 76.8 percent last year. As a team the Bucks shot for 83.3 percent from the free throw line, compared to the Boston’s 52.4 percent shooting from the charity stripe. This was an absolute difference-maker between 1-0 and 0-1. The Milwaukee Bucks just made sure they were able to show just a little bit of what has changed already from last season.

Matthew Dellavedova made timely and clutch plays down the stretch. He logged 26 minutes, scoring 15 points on 4-for-10 shooting from the field and 2-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc. John Henson made the most of his minutes, especially on the defensive side. He played just 17 minutes, but scored five points on 2-of-2 shooting with six rebounds, four blocks and two assists.

Next: 2017-18 Week 1 NBA Power Rankings

The Bucks looked to be in pretty good shape against a banged up and shaken up Celtics squad, but should look to carry the momentum of their first win over into the next. It was only one game, but the Milwaukee Bucks are off to a good start as a potential top contender in the Eastern Conference.