There were some flashes, a new shot for victory at the siren against Sacramento, two games with 40 points or more, and even a starting place in the All-Star Game for the Eastern Conference.
However, the experience Damian Lillard in Milwaukee is not yet fully satisfactory. The former Portland player is not yet optimally integrated into the Bucks' game, and in particular in his association with Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Greek came back in length to The Athletic on this new duo. And reiterated his confidence in him, especially in decisive moments.
“ I'm his biggest fan » proclaimed the Greek Freak. “ For better or worse, I'm sticking with Lady until the end. As I've said over and over again: It is. Her. Team. At the end of the match, he will have the balls. We won't do anything else. But in the end, he must also believe it. »
“Lady, it’s not Khris”
The two All-Stars are currently unable to find their chemistry. And with this duo coughing, it's all the Bucks who are skating, already eight and a half victories behind the Celtics leaders of the East. Giannis Antetokounmpo admits, he still has to work to streamline his association with a player like he has never encountered, namely a real scoring leader. If he believes he has already found a weapon by sending Lillard into orbit as quickly as possible after taking the rebound, the Greek is also learning to adapt to a new game plan.
“ He's not like a Khris Middleton, you don't need to always set screens for him so that he has that little space to attempt a floater, a mid-range shot or for a shot behind the screen at two as 3-pointers. Sometimes you have to put screens on him. And sometimes you have to give it space. If I'm on the right of the field and he's on the left, I systematically transfer the ball to him because once I pass it to him, he exploits it. It helps the team. »
A strong player in isolation and accustomed to frequently having to take the game on his own, Damian Lillard is now forced to share the poster with Giannis Antetokounmpo.
And the two-headed monster hoped for between a very high level creator and the greatest danger in the entire NBA once launched to attack the circle has not yet found its cruising speed. The pick-and-roll between the two men has still not established itself as a priority weapon for Milwaukee.
“ This should happen naturally » explains the strong winger. “ It can't just be 'Give the ball to Dame, set the screen and it'll work.' That's not how it works. And when we do, the other guys have to move, and keep occupying the defenders. »
A dangerous but underused pick-and-roll
However, the recipe shows first results. The pick-and-roll between Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard is the third most efficient this season in terms of average number of points scored (1.23 points per screen, behind the 1.29 of the Tyrese Haliburton – Myles Turner tandems and the 1.24 of Jaylen Brown – Kristaps Porzingis).
However, the Greek is not exploited as often as one might have thought as a screen setter, and he is less so than other dominant interior scorers like Nikola Jokic or even Joel Embiid despite his missed matches. for injury. He only shoots 7% of the time after a screen, a sign that the pick-and-roll with Giannis Antetokounmpo mainly serves the Bucks to attract help to shift the shooters, and not necessarily to free up space to allow the “Greek Freak” to go to the circle.
That is most points scored *by the screener* per 100 picks he's set. It's a function of how often he receives the ball after setting the pick and how effectively he can score once he gets the ball in those situations. pic.twitter.com/nhl8GaE5FA
— Todd Whitehead (@CrumpledJumper) February 19, 2024
To build this understanding, Giannis Antetokounmpo took advantage of All-Star Weekend to spend time with Damian Lillard. “ We were able to have discussions about how the team has been performing lately, and what we want to do, how we can help make each other better. When you have the opportunity to cut away, not only from the season, but from your team and just be one-on-one, bonding like that, it's always helpful. »
While Damian Lillard had arrived in Wisconsin barely a week before training camp, the former Blazer and Giannis Antetokounmpo were able to share a weekend “ positive » according to the 2019 and 2020 MVP. We do not know if it is these exchanges which have already borne fruit, but the leader in any case took advantage of the All-Star Weekend to boost his morale, by winning the 3-point contest, then the All-Star Game MVP title.
