NBA Starting Lineups and Match Prediction: Milwaukee Bucks vs Toronto Raptors - Game 6
The Toronto Raptors are on the verge of making the NBA Finals for the first time in the franchise's 24-year history. They are just one win away and all it took was finally adding one superstar to their roster - in this case, Kawhi Leonard.
Highly expected to depart Toronto as a free agent this summer after one year with them, he has given their fanbase hope and joy like no Raptors' player before his arrival.
In game five on Thursday night, Leonard led all scorers with 35 points and nine assists. With help from Pascal Siakam's double-double, 14 points and 13 rebounds, in addition to 17 points from Kyle Lowry, there was also a pleasant surprise from Fred VanVleet. He scored 21 points on 7/9 shooting from the 3-point arc and ultimately the Raptors prevailed in another close game, like game three in this series with a 105-99 win.
Milwaukee had jumped out to a 14-point lead (18-4) early on, in-front of their home crowd. Despite a double-digit lead in the third quarter and a slender advantage to start the fourth, the Raptors continued to battle back. Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 24 points to lead the Bucks, while Eric Bledsoe also had 20 points despite this latest defeat.
Game 6 will be a desperation elimination game that the Bucks must win on the road to survive and reclaim home court advantage ahead of game six. Game 6 of this Eastern Conference Finals will take place Saturday night in Toronto.
Milwaukee Bucks' starters for game six:
Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer will be expected to start Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez, Malcolm Brogdon, Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe.
Toronto Raptors' starters for game six:
Toronto's head coach Nick Nurse will likely counter that starting five with Marc Gasol, Pascal Siakam, Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry and Danny Green.
Expectations and Prediction
Toronto has the advantage in this series with regards to playoff experience. Not every Raptors player has performed well either. Between Marc Gasol and Danny Green, the pair had just four points in game five - but they continue finding ways to win and now have three successive victories in this series.
Thursday night, they were shooting 42% from three with VanVleet stealing the headlines courtesy of his efficient night from distance. While Giannis may be this year's MVP, he's not yet a more complete player than Kawhi Leonard. In one playoff run as a Raptor, he leads them with the most ever 30+ point playoff games at 11 and counting. Even when he doesn't dominate a game by scoring, they again find a way to win - doing so in game four when he was limping and still had 16 points.
The Raptors defense and execution continues to be the identity of this edition of the team. When they won game three 118-112 in double-overtime, the Raptors shot just 39% but also held Milwaukee to 37%.
Thursday night, the Raptors shot just 36% but also forced six steals, 11 turnovers and held the Bucks to 10/31 from three-point range at 32%. They have averaged 38 attempts from distance throughout the regular season - while the Raptors only committed two steals and turned the ball over six times, which limited easy scoring opportunities for the Bucks.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has a problem: if he cannot get to the rim, he has no mid-range game. When the Raptors defense prevents him from getting into the restricted area for dunks and layups, he forces his game. It's imperative he facilitates more and finds open shooters when they collapse on him.
After a 60-win season, the Bucks had not suffered a three-game losing streak across the entirety of the 2018/19 NBA season. They also won 27 of 41 road games this year but after five games in the Eastern Conference Finals, find themselves with a must-win game on Saturday night if they want to extend the series to a game seven.
Budenholzer returned Brogdon to the starting line-up for game five, but the team's bench production has not improved. Despite being an early issue for Toronto, it has flipped completely and the Bucks have only managed 23 points (game four) and 15 (game five) in their latest two defeats.
With Toronto's experience starting to show and help them weather spotty offensive play, in addition to a raucous home crowd ready to go crazy, expect the Raptors to take game six by four possessions on Saturday night - booking their place in the Conference Finals against the Golden State Warriors next week.