Milwaukee Bucks: 5 keys to 2019 Eastern Conference Finals vs. Raptors

1. Win the battle of the beasts

If the Bucks want any chance of advancing to the NBA Finals, Giannis Antetokounmpo must be the best player on the court — no exceptions.

So far into his deepest playoff run, the Greek Freak has been nothing short of spectacular. Not only has he become a defensive force inside the paint, he has also slowly but surely become one of the more selfless superstars in the NBA today.

With the ego-driven upper echelon of the NBA, the Milwaukee Bucks superstar has often gone multiple possessions without touching the basketball while deferring to his teammates to get them engaged, particularly Eric Bledsoe and Nikola Mirotic.

While that seemed like the logical decision, against a stout defensive team such as Toronto, Giannis must spearhead the charge on offense to create more open shots for his teammates. Mirotic, Middleton and Brogdon are all capable catch-and-shoot players, so it’s hard to imagine the lack of touches affecting their game much, or at all.

On the other side of the ball, Giannis needs to help neutralize Kawhi Leonard.

An argument can be made that Leonard has been the best player throughout the 2019 NBA Playoffs thus far, so for the Bucks to have a shot, Leonard needs to be neutralized.

By now we know that Kawhi cannot be stopped one-on-one, but Giannis, Middleton, Bledsoe and Brogdon have to collectively slow down the Klaw.