There’s no denying that the Milwaukee Bucks’ problems on the defensive end was on full display yet again on Wednesday night against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The fact that they lost by a season-worst 40 points to their Central Division foes is an undeniable testament to this fact.
According to Damian Lillard, however, there is one specific factor that led to Milwaukee’s defensive issues against the Cavs.
Damian Lillard Speaks Out on Milwaukee Bucks’ Problems Vs. Cavs
Lillard kept it simple in his post-game press conference. According to the seven-time All-Star, poor offense led to his team’s evident problems on transition defense:
“When our offense struggles, I think that’s usually when it looks the worst,” Lillard said, via Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “When we don’t execute and we don’t get quality shots, it just makes it worse because we don’t have floor balance.
“Usually when you have good offense, you can see where the shot is going to come from, you can see where the ball is going to go and you can see how it’s going to happen and what shot should be taken. When you don’t have that, it’s more unpredictable.”
Offensively, the Bucks went 38-of-95 (40.0 percent) from the field as a unit. They shot even worse from beyond the arc, going just 12-of-42 (28.6 percent) on their attempts from deep.
As Lillard said, their shooting woes led to even more problems on the defensive end, which resulted in Cleveland scoring 135 points on them on the evening.
There’s also no denying that Giannis Antetokounmpo’s injury absence had a little bit to do with Milwaukee’s struggles on both ends against the Cavs.
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