Milwaukee Bucks lost two games last weekend. All of us including yours truly kind of wondered what was wrong with the team. On Monday night, Bucks turned out one of their best performances of the year, and the players talked after the game about how it was a ‘must-win.’ On Wednesday night, they followed it up with a dominating performance of the Indiana Pacers where they won 130-110 in a game that was a far bigger blowout than the score shows. As the great Lou Brown said in Major League, “Startin’ to come together, Pepper! Startin’ to come together!”

Player of the Game: Giannis Antetokounmpo – What a game from the Greek Freak. Indiana does not have an answer for him. Myles Turner is supposed to be this defensive stopper and Giannis owns him. Every time it is a massacre for Turner. I wouldn’t play against the Bucks if I were Myles. Antetokounmpo notched a triple-double in three quarters. 21 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists, and 7-for-8 from the free-throw line. All of Giannis’ points came from inside the paint. More on that later in the blog.

Honorable Mention: Bryn Forbes – Look, I know that Bryn Forbes’s final stat line isn’t that great, but he made such an impact in the first half of this game. Forbes lit up Indian early and often. He finished the game with 20 points and four made threes. He gave Milwaukee a great spark off the bench. Forbes is making a case for replacing Donte DiVencenzo in the starting lineup.

What went right for Milwaukee? – Giannis has said ‘Fuck threes, I don’t need em.’: We mentioned this on the podcast two weeks ago that a trend started to develop where Giannis stopped shooting threes. Antetokounmpo has gone away from the three and started dominating in the post. He is damn near unstoppable there and can pass out of the post like a suped-up version of Karl Malone. It’s incredible to watch this happen over the last few games. There are not many teams that can compete with Giannis in the post.

What also went right for Milwaukee? – Another time management game for the Bucks: The two losses last weekend stung, but the two blowouts made the minutes a moot point. The last two games have seen all the starters get significant rest. Monday had Jrue Holiday as the only starter with 30 or more minutes. While last night, it was Giannis with 31. A well-rested Bucks team will be needed for their long road trip.

Next up: Milwaukee heads to Cleveland for a two-game set starting on Friday night. Cleveland is scrappy and better than years’ past. Although they haven’t played that well of late. Since sweeping Brooklyn, Cleveland has lost five of their last seven. This will be an interesting test for Post Giannis with Andre Drummond and Jarrett Allen in the paint.

Charlie.