The Milwaukee Bucks bench came up big on Monday night in their statement win against the defending Eastern Conference champions Miami Heat. The starters did their thing, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard combining for 58 out of Milwaukee’s 122 points on the evening.
The bench, however, stepped it up when they needed to, which resulted in the Bucks outdueling Jimmy Butler and Co., 122-116.
Milwaukee Bucks Guard Cam Payne Comments on Win Vs. Miami
One of Milwaukee’s offseason recruits is combo guard Cam Payne, who signed with the team on a $2 million, one-year deal. While his impact hasn’t been as significant as that of Damian Lillard, the former Phoenix Suns veteran has still been able to make his mark on his new team.
On Saturday, Payne had a breakout performance, scoring 11 points off the bench in just 13 minutes of action. The 29-year-old went 4-of-5 on his attempts from the field, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. His scoring punch for the second unit is exactly what the Bucks needed against a feisty Heat side.
“I mean, it was really good,” Payne said on the bench’s effort, via Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “We’re starting to find out the things we can run, starting to find some continuity with each other, starting to find out what everybody good at. Our unit is kind of different, so we’re just trying to figure it out. This is Game (3). Tonight, we were hitting, but also the ball was moving left to right, got a lot of second-side action. But for that unit, we gotta keep moving the ball, keep getting open shots.”
It wasn’t just Payne who delivered for the Bucks’ second unit. Bobby Portis stole the show in his 19 minutes off the bench, going off for 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting. The veteran big man also logged eight boards, two assists, two steals, and a block as he once again proved that he’s going to be the most important player off the bench for Milwaukee this season.
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