It was clear from the outset that the Bucks were tight yesterday. It took them nearly three minutes to score two baskets in the first quarter, and only until close to the end of the second were they able to get their first taste of the lead. In part, their shakiness off the blocks was due to their relative lack of familiarity with each other; among other things, starting guard Jrue Holiday was making his first playoff appearance for the green and white. In larger measure, it was because they faced the dreaded Heat, who — while seeded sixth and six games worse than them in league standings — just so happened to have made short work of them in last year’s playoffs.
The slow start and understandable jitters notwithstanding, the Bucks knew they had it in them to upend their foils. Above all else, they boasted of two-time Most Valuable Player awardee Giannis Antetokounmpo, deadly in any situation and even more potent alongside Holiday and two-time All-Star Khris Middleton. And with head coach Mike Budenholzer known to coax his roster to be better than the sum of its parts, the prognosis appeared to be better this time around. All they needed, really, was to confront their worst fears en route to slaying their dragons.
The flipside, of course, is that the Heat are at least as good at turning potential into practice. Through sheer willpower, they’re able to squeeze more out of themselves than seemingly possible in the face of personnel limitations. And, as things turned out, yesterday was no exception. On offense, they managed to rely on balanced production despite poor shooting from acknowledged leaders Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. Meanwhile, their defense was typically otherworldly; even though they broke out their vaunted “Wall” only once in yesterday’s set-to, they still managed to contain Antetokounmpo to 26 points off 27 shots.
As relentless as the Heat may be, however, the Bucks simply proved to be better in the end. Butler forced overtime with a well-timed floating layin at the buzzer against coverage from Antetokounmpo and slotman Brook Lopez, but Middleton one-upped him by sinking the game winner with half a second left in the extra period. Holiday then blocked his trey attempt off a well-executed inbounds pass to seal the outcome.
In retrospect, the individual shows of force underscore the intrinsic superiority of the Bucks. Considering how Game One unfolded, they’re not likely to exit the 2021 postseason in a whimper. They’ve learned their lesson, and if the Heat somehow manage to get the better of them all the same, it won’t be because they failed to show their best under pressure.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
