What we learned from the Bucks' win over the Raptors

The Milwaukee Bucks scored a road win over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday, in what could be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals. 

It was hardly a masterpiece, but the Bucks managed to take over going into the second half and never looked back, en route to a 108-97 win.

The loss put the Raptors eight games back from first place in the East. Here is what we learned from the matchup.

Bucks still dangerous when opposition limits Giannis

It’s a rare occurrence to see Giannis Antetokounmpo held to fewer than 20 points in a game. It has happened only three times since the start of January. 

Credit to the Raptors for making life difficult for the MVP frontrunner, who saw a steady dose of double-team coverage and was held to 19 points. Toronto also wasn't afraid to go right after him at the other end of the court.

But the Bucks still have tremendous depth, led on this occasion by Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe, who both chipped in with solid performances. 

That depth is a main reason the Bucks are favored to win the NBA Championship. 

Middleton led the Bucks with 22 points, and Bledsoe put up 17. Both offenses were kept in check, but the Bucks were able to get more from their Middleton and Bledsoe, compared to Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, or Serge Ibaka of the Raptors.

The MVP favorite still found a way 

Toronto emphasized the need to limit Antetokounmpo, but the 25-year-old forward was still a key factor.

He had 19 defensive rebounds and eight assists, which is above his season average of 5.8 per game. On a night when he didn’t shoot particularly well (35.7% from the field), he was able to become a distributor when needed. 

Elite players usually find a way to come through, though, and Antetokounmpo did just that late in the fourth quarter, when it looked like the Raptors had momentum and were closing the gap. He calmly drained a three-pointer to restore Milwaukee’s 10-point lead and essentially put the game to bed.

The Raptors are missing that X-Factor 

The Raptors are just missing something.  

Toronto has taken care of business this season, and already proved preseason prognostications wrong. Lowry has been good, Pascal Siakam is showing signs of a rising star, and the Raptors are getting contributions and important minutes from their bench. Nick Nurse should also receive plenty of credit for the coaching job he’s done this season.   

But can they make it back to the NBA Finals?

The Raptors have currently odds of +2000 to win the NBA Championship at BetAmerica. 

You can be sure the Raptors will battle just as hard to get back to the Finals this year, but this loss to Milwaukee exposed a reality. The Raptors just don’t have that X-factor player who is going to put them over the top.

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