Milwaukee Bucks: 3 takeaways from Game 1 vs. Pistons

2. The Bucks don’t need the 3-pointer to beat Detroit

Milwaukee’s slew of sharpshooters will likely need to catch fire at one point in the playoffs for the team to reach the finals. Game 1 against the Pistons showed it won’t need to be in this series.

Yes, the Bucks hit 15-of-43 3-pointers. But they also made 29-of-47 shots from everywhere else.

Giannis and company shredded through the Pistons like they were about to sprinkle them on a Detroit-style pan pizza (which is highly underrated in case you didn’t know). Milwaukee hit 26 shots in the paint, with 20 of them coming at the rim. That’s essentially 40 points off layups or dunks.

The Bucks feature Bledsoe, who is one of the best guards at beating defenders one-on-one in the open court. His combination is speed and physicality is one of the game’s best, making up for his lack of finesse and raw talent. Middleton is a master of using his length to get to the rim. Hill is a physical guard who has never been afraid of contact.

Point being, Milwaukee features too many basket attackers for Detroit to handle without a healthy Griffin. Oh yeah, and there’s this guy as well:

Perimeter-based players Nikola Mirotic and Ersan Ilyasova can take this series off, which is essentially what they did in the first game, only scoring a combined four points.

Milwaukee scored 52 points in the paint and Drummond — Detroit’s only real rim deterrent — was a horrific -45 in 26 minutes before being ejected, giving him the worst plus-minus on record in NBA playoff history. The Bucks are going to control the Pistons in the paint, meaning their normal 3-point onslaught isn’t even essential to beat this opponent.