Brad Stevens is a great coach. You know that, I know that. Stevens is a mastermind, and he will win NBA Championships at some point in his coaching career. Stevens struggled with trying to stop Giannis Antetokounmpo all year. Not just in the NBA Playoffs, but all year. The Greek Freak had his way with the Celtics through nine games played against Boston this season. But last night, things changed a bit. Giannis only shot the ball 10 times and scored only 13 points. Stevens made a switch to his starting lineup putting Semi Ojeyle in there over Aron Baynes which worked out masterfully for him. Bucks will need to find some open looks for Giannis in Game 6.

Joe Prunty cannot match wits with Stevens. Hell, Prunty couldn’t even do it in a game of beer pong. Therefore, it’s concerning that the Boston coach found a way to slow down Giannis. You hope that the team can make the moves to free up Giannis for more opportunities. If Antetokounmpo has another rough night from the field in Game 6, the narrative across the league will change about him, and I would be interested to see how Giannis handles the criticism.

This is where having a score-first point guard hurts the Bucks superstar tremendously. If Eric Bledsoe was more a Ricky Rubio-type, I’d be confident that Antetokounmpo could find more open looks on cuts and post-ups. But Bledsoe does not seem to find Giannis when he’s open. Antetokounmpo has to create so much that the guards do him a disservice. Maybe Malcolm Brogdon is the answer. Maybe it’s a two-man, pick and roll game with Khris Middleton and others. Giannis has been stellar as the roll man setting screens in this playoffs. Bledsoe received a ton of criticism for his play, and for good reason, but if he can be a catalyst for getting Antetokounmpo easy bucks on Thursday, all might be forgiven.

There’s a chance that it’s a one time thing and we’re overreacting. Remember, Giannis has a 8-1 record over Stevens’ plans. Sometimes, people get lucky.

Charlie.