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The Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks will face off in the 2021 NBA Finals with the championship at stake.
It’s a matchup that almost no one could have predicted at the start of the season. Chris Paul (Suns) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks) are both deserving of a first-ever championship, though only one will take home the prize.
Individual player matchups always play an absolutely critical role in determining the winners of such series.
The Milwaukee Bucks will be shorthanded against the Phoenix Suns
Winning Game 1 is crucial to this series and the Milwaukee Bucks will try to steal a win on the Phoenix Suns home court.
Unfortunately for the Bucks, Antetokounmpo remains doubtful for the first game of the 2021 NBA Finals. The Greek Freak hyperextended his left knee in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals and he hasn’t been in action since. He will reportedly try to play on Tuesday, but it all depends on how his knee holds up in the morning of the series-opener.
His absence will be advantageous for the Phoenix Suns, who are coming into the series in better health than their opponent.
With Antetokounmpo sidelined, other player battles will take center stage and could prove to be the deciding factor for Game 1. Here, we look at three key player battles that could ultimately decide the winner.
#1 Chris Paul (Phoenix Suns) vs Jrue Holiday (Milwaukee Bucks)
The Phoenix Suns’ Chris Paul will go head-to-head with one of the best defensive guards in the league. After facing Patrick Beverley for stretches during the Western Conference Finals, Paul will face a bigger and stronger opponent in the Milwaukee Bucks’ Jrue Holiday.
This battle of veteran point guards is almost an even matchup. Paul turned the clock back against the LA Clippers in the Western Conference Finals when he averaged 24.0 points, 8.8 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Holiday, meanwhile, had a stellar ECF with averages of 22.0 points, 10.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks per game.
Both are excellent defenders and will almost certainly cancel each other out when they meet in Game 1. Paul will have the Phoenix Suns crowd behind him, however, so expect him to have a slight advantage over his Milwaukee Bucks counterpart.
#2 Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns) vs Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks)
This battle of shooters from the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns will be one of the highlights of Game 1 of the NBA Finals. A season-ending injury to shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo forced coach Mike Budenholzer to slide Khris Middleton to the shooting guard position. The decision has worked wonders so far for the Bucks.
Middleton has put up 23.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game in the postseason for the Milwaukee Bucks. However, he has made just 33.8 percent from three and 43.4 percent overall in the playoffs.
Similarly, the Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker has not shot the ball particularly well in the 2021 NBA Playoffs. In 16 games, he averages 27.0 points on 44.4 percent shooting from the field and 34.4 percent from 3-point range. He has also added 6.4 boards and 4.8 dimes per contest.
The Milwaukee Bucks forward has a size advantage over Booker, who is two inches shorter. They may not necessarily face each other defensively but they will have to outdo each other regardless. Both players are also excellent shooters from inside the arc, though Booker is the better slasher.
#3 Deandre Ayton (Phoenix Suns) vs Brook Lopez (Milwaukee Bucks)
Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez will face an offensive threat of a similar build in the 2021 NBA Finals. Unlike in the first three rounds of the playoffs, Lopez will be taking on the Phoenix Suns' Deandre Ayton, who is bigger, stronger and a more polished low post scorer than the other centers he has faced so far .
Ayton averaged a double-double in the WCF for the Phoenix Suns with 17.8 points, 13.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. He has shot a sizzling 70.6 percent from the field in the postseason. Ayton also has a soft touch from eight-to-10 feet and can cause Lopez and the Milwaukee Bucks a lot of problems in the painted area.
But the 280-pound Lopez will be able to bump bodies with the relatively slender Ayton. Additionally, the Milwaukee Bucks center is an excellent defender, and could cause the Phoenix Suns big man a lot of problems when he attempts to get clear looks at the basket.
Lopez scored a 2021 postseason high of 33 points to go along with seven rebounds and four blocks in the Milwaukee Bucks' crucial Game 5 win against the Hawks. Numbers such as these suggest he could present more problems for the Phoenix Suns than most realize.
Lopez could cause some issues for the the Phoenix Suns with his 3-point shooting, but Ayton has the advantage in this battle.
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Guess the Lakers players!
