Thon Maker's vision turns Bucks' playoff series
ST. FRANCIS - Even before the Milwaukee Bucks drafted 7-foot-1 Thon Maker, he knew he would be a perfect fit.
Following his draft workout at the Cousins Center, Maker said he would love to join “team all-length,” as he dubbed it.
Then it happened, when the Bucks surprisingly selected Maker with the 10th overall pick in the 2016 draft.
Now the Bucks are starting to reap some of the rewards as Maker continues to have a stunning impact on the team’s first-round Eastern Conference playoff series against the Toronto Raptors.
The teams meet in Game 4 on Saturday afternoon, with the Bucks leading, 2-1, after their 27-point victory on Thursday night before an amped BMO Harris Bradley Center crowd.
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“Yes, this is what I envisioned,” Maker said after practice Friday, instantly remembering his comments from last spring. “Us using our length, flying around on the defensive end.
“Jabari (Parker) was in that vision, too.”
Parker made huge strides in his third pro season before suffering a season-ending knee injury in February, but the Bucks have regrouped to become a dangerous sixth-seeded playoff team.
Much of their success in the first three games against third-seeded Toronto has come thanks to their length all over the court. Maker and Giannis Antetokounmpo are challenging shots at the rim and making the Raptors wary of coming into the paint.
And the length in the Bucks’ wing players is impressive, too. Tony Snell, the team’s 6-7 shooting guard, helped limit DeMar DeRozan to eight points and an 0-for-8 night from the field in Game 3.
“We have length,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. “If we don’t use it, we’re not going to win.”
Kidd’s confidence has grown in Maker as the 20-year-old South Sudan native and Australian citizen has adjusted to the pace of the NBA game.
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“He’s been active,” Kidd said. “Being a plus; we need that energy he’s had. We don’t judge him on his offensive performance.
“But being able to guard the pick-and-roll and change shots has helped us.”
The Bucks defense limited the Raptors to 83 points in a series-opening win and held them to 30 points in the first half Thursday as Milwaukee rolled to a 104-77 victory.
“Any time anybody comes in the paint, even in the regular season, we’ll do the same thing,” Maker said. “Protect the paint, protect the three-point line.
“It’s just setting the tone early. We just have to stay patient and stay in our coverages.”
Antetokounmpo knocked away what appeared to be an easy layup by Jonas Valanciunas in the opening moments of Thursday’s game.
Late in the third quarter, the Greek Freak actually used his elbow to block a shot by Raptors guard Norman Powell.
“I saw the replay last night when I went back and watched the game,” Maker said. “I thought he could have hooked the ball back as a rebound; that was a crazy block.
“Sometimes you want to block a shot just to send them a message. An emphatic block like that will make them think twice next time, make them come back and attack differently. Maybe they come out of control and you take a charge.”
The 6-11 Antetokounmpo was drafted 15th overall in 2013, while the 6-8 Parker was selected second overall the next year. The 6-11 John Henson, who has yet to play in the series, was taken 14th overall in 2012.
General manager John Hammond believed the length would pay off in the long run.
But Maker’s current impact is a pleasant surprise. Kidd said in Toronto earlier in the series that the Bucks did not want him to have a “wasted season” and the coaches thought if he played limited minutes as a starter it could help him and the team.
“I trusted him from the jump,” Maker said. “They know what they’re doing. He’s a young coach, people say, but he has played this game and is one of the all-time greats. I just had to trust and now it’s paying off.”
Maker said his approach to limited minutes was to try to earn more.
“I was thinking I have 5 guaranteed minutes and I’ve got to make the most of it,” he said. “And it kept building up.
“I just had to clock it in and go as hard as I could in that 5 (minutes). And it just kept going up and up.”
Maker starts and 6-11 Greg Monroe enters about halfway through the first quarter. The centers are quite different and pose challenges for opponents.
“I see my energy rubbing off on everybody else, and his energy also rubs off on everybody, including myself,” Maker said.
“Early on I try to get the other bigs tired, and when he comes in he goes to work. That’s pretty easy for him.”
BUCKS-RAPTORS SCHEDULE (All times Central)
Eastern Conference first-round series (best of seven)
Saturday, April 15 - Bucks 97, Raptors 83
Tuesday, April 18 - Raptors 106, Bucks 100
Thursday, April 20 - Bucks 104, Raptors 77 (Bucks lead series, 2-1)
Saturday, April 22 - Game 4 at Milwaukee, 2 p.m. (TNT, FSW)
Monday, April 24 - Game 5 at Toronto, 6 p.m. (NBA TV, FSW)
Thursday, April 27 - Game 6 at Milwaukee, TBD (FSW), if necessary
Saturday, April 29 - Game 7 at Toronto, TBD (TNT, FSW), if necessary