Bobby Portis and Kyle Kuzma, the fire and ice the Bucks need
With only one win and seven losses without Giannis AntetokounmpoThe Bucks were in a lot of pain before hosting one of the strongest teams in the league on Thursday. les Boston Celtics. However, Milwaukee came out the winner of this duelwon in the second period thanks to a tighter defense and several players who managed to raise their level. Especially Kyle Kuzma etc Bobby Portis.
In Milwaukee’s last two outings, the Bucks have struggled but come up short offensively. They barely reached 100 points in Philly with five players between 14 and 22 points, and nothing else, especially without a real leader to lean on. And Detroit, Kevin Porter Jr he shouldered this responsibility with 32 points, but was too much alone to topple the East leader. Against Boston, Kuzma and Portis were in excellent form. And Milwaukee then becomes a much more dangerous team.
Kuzma’s good choice
Kuzma has never topped 17 points this season in Antetokounmpo’s absence, averaging about the same as he did in the presence of the “Greek Freak” (12.5 points vs. 12.8). On Thursday, he acted like a boss with 31 points, but above all, a lot of good choices. While the Celtics regularly played small ball or with one interior forced to defend out wide against Myles Turner or Bobby Portis, the former Wizards player focused on the penetration game (11/14 shooting on the racket) to look for easy baskets.
“Kuz had an excellent match on the floor (dribbling and passing, court play as opposed to jumps or play above the circle, editor’s note) » analyzed by Doc Rivers at the press conference. “He’s stuck to that shooting profile. He’s avoiding the mid-range shot. We want him to make threes from the corner. And we want him to attack the basket. And if he can’t finish the layup, let him get the ball out. He did all of these things tonight.”
The wing stepped up in moments when the Bucks needed it most to come back from a 14-point deficit in the second quarter or turn the game around after returning from the locker room. “Scoot is to be congratulated.” (nickname of Kevin Porter Jr.)Ryan and Cole », say hello to Kuzma. « They did a phenomenal job finding me in this area. There should have been an emphasis. When we get the ball inside and have shooters around, I can have one-on-one opportunities. And I have confidence in myself in these situations, to use my physical strength on the defender and attack the circle hard, not looking for a mistake and trying to score two points. »
That’s especially what he was able to accomplish by removing Jaylen Brown, 16 points in 15 minutes in the first period, from his matchup in the second act. On a counter attack, Kuzma attacks Brown and hits him in the ribs. The Celtics star is penalized for 2+1 and gets frustrated, before immediately picking up an attacking foul, committed by Kuzma, his third synonym for returning to the bench more than three minutes into the half. The only slight heat of the evening under complete control, something we don’t necessarily know about.
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This composure, however, is still not in the register of Bobby Portis. And the Bucks have nothing to complain about. The interior offered pure Portis: intensity off the bench, a spark that added a dose of electricity to the air until a technical foul for harassing Jaylen Brown a little too hard after a successful dunk against a Celtics player. ” I’m an emotional player, I play on the edge, especially in big matches like this. assumes the person in question in front of the media. « Throw in a few shots and you know, the room is one of those places where you can scream and be yourself. I was always taught to play with emotions and have fun. When you’re having fun, everything else follows and it’s as if the ball also finds energy. (…) When I go to the floor, I am just myself and let everything else flow by itself. Whether I guessed it or not, I’m just Bobby. »
Best match of the season for Bobby Portis
“Vintage” Bobby scored 27 points on 11/13 shooting and 10 rebounds in 27 minutes on Thursday, his first “double-double” of the season and a big shot that definitely brought Boston back in the fourth quarter. ” We needed him, that’s the first thing “, Doc Rivers congratulated. You know what I liked? Not that he forced anything. The ball was coming to him. He got in the right positions and hit the right shots. And I think that was one of his best defensive games. »
More behind this season, the interior still found color to take over when Giannis Antetokounmpo is in civilian clothes. Against Boston, he simply signed his best performance of the season, and now he has his best five matches of the season without the Greek star! Now in his 30s, Bobby Portis underscored the importance of two days of rest that the Bucks could have benefited from recently, followed by two days of intensive training provided by Doc Rivers and his staff. ” We played harder and brought more energy into this game “, Portis summarized after the meeting. I have a feeling that if they had tried a little harder and brought more energy in the first 25 games, our record probably would have been different. »
With its Kuzma – Portis ying and yang tandem, this one has everything to look better. This success already puts the Bucks two wins ahead of the Bulls for 10e place in the Eastern Conference.
2025-12-12 11:05:00
