| Still not sure who to root for in these NBA Finals, a series that features two teams with more than enough likability and no built-in villains on the roster? Never mind. Don’t even pick a side. Just root for a Game 7 instead. It took a little while for the Phoenix Suns vs. Milwaukee Bucks tussle to fully breathe into life, but it is wide awake now, a Game 4 thriller having served the dual purpose of leveling things at two games apiece and getting the viewing audience salivating for more. Dramatic moments like Giannis Antetokounmpo’s outrageous block in the waning moments on Wednesday night have a tendency to get us all fired up, but the truth is that the Suns and Bucks have both gotten the opening jabs out of their system and are now mentally entrenched in the singular task of trying to fight their way to a championship. There have been surges and bumps in the road and bounce-backs and twists and it has done nothing more than lead us to a point of equality, with up to three games remaining to decide it all. Let’s hope it gets that far. |
Because this thing just got really, really, good. There wasn’t an over-abundance of spice to the first three games, all decided by double digits and rarely offering a great deal of suspense in terms of what the outcome was going to be. That shifted at Fiserv Forum on Wednesday, with the Suns giving their all to try to move to within a game of their first title and the Bucks holding their nerve – spurred late by Antetokounmpo’s leap toward the heavens – to prevent them from doing so. They’re into it now, these two groups of players. The initial nerves are gone. That realization that this is the Finals, the pinnacle, a career dream, has passed. It’s just about winning. The mental battles are locked in, and tactical shifts that could decide things one way or another are in play. Game 4 brought a crucial one, with Milwaukee head coach Mike Budenholzer’s altered pressure system tempting Chris Paul to be a little over-aggressive, resulting in a spate of turnovers. Next time around, as the series moves back to Phoenix on Saturday, rest assured that the Suns will have come up with a plan to counteract it. And so the matchup goes, swinging one way or another, albeit with largely the same collection of core characters deciding the narrative. One thing we have learned is that neither team can survive without their star tandem being in synch. During the pair of home games that brought the Bucks back into contention, Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton were firmly aligned, while Paul and Devin Booker each struggled in a game. Now it boils down to a three-game shootout and, if home advantage continues to hold, quite possibly 48 minutes for all the marbles toward the end of next week. “I think it is going to end in seven, but if it ends in six, there is only one team can win this thing, and that’s Milwaukee,” FS1’s Nick Wright said on “First Things First.” Certainly, the Bucks have grasped some momentum from their home stand although the Suns remain the betting favorite, predominantly because two of the remaining three games would be at home. Phoenix is -162 with FOX Bet to claim the crown, with Milwaukee at +135. Either way, it is going to be a fight, and all the more worthy because of it. Game 4 wasn’t a spectacle of delightful basketball perfection, it was a tug-of-war, physical and exhausting, no quarter asked or given. There were mistakes aplenty. Paul’s turnover count (five total) got most of the attention but there was more to it than that. Even in victory, the Bucks shot only 40%. “The Suns blew this game, it was right there for them on a silver platter,” Shannon Sharpe said on “Undisputed.” “Chris Paul played awful, he gagged this game up. This was a prime setup for them to take a commanding 3-1 lead.” The curse of the Finals is that everyone is watching if you mess up. The beauty of the Finals is that you quickly get a chance to get it right. Leaving Milwaukee, the Bucks were buoyant, Antetokounmpo in particularly good spirits, so much so that he joked how being taken off the court earlier than usual in the past two games was because he needed to go tinkle. For Paul and the Suns, things were more serious, having seen a two-game lead evaporate into nothing. “At this point both teams know each other,” Paul told reporters. “We got to execute. That’s why we fought all season to get home court.” And so, the fight continues, alive and vibrant, with more drama and turns to come – and maybe culminating in a one-off to determine it all. Here’s what others have said … Colin Cowherd, The Herd: “We’ve got a chess match here. The last four minutes, the veteran Bucks jumped over the young Suns. That’s what veteran teams do at home in big spots” Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks: “Everybody’s tired. Everybody’s banged up. Just have to give it your all and leave it all on the court. We can rest and sleep and get treatment after the game. But while that game is being played, there’s no excuses of exhaustion or something is hurt.” Vincent Goodwilll, Yahoo Sports: “It no longer feels like a series that’s too big for the Bucks. They seem comfortable with where they are now, unless it was merely the home court providing an advantage they’ll relinquish on Saturday night when this series will be untied in Phoenix.” |
