Milwaukee Bucks’ big 3 proving to be worth every penny

$540.5 million.

That’s what the Milwaukee Bucks owe the terrific trio of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday over the life of their contracts. Five years and a whopping $228 million that begins next season and goes until 2025-26 for Antetokounmpo. Four years and $135 million for Holiday that also begins in 2021-22. Five years and $177.5 million for Middleton that began back in 2019-20.

And they are all proving to be worth every penny in this extended playoff run that has them one game away from winning the NBA Finals.

It hasn’t been a perfect run for the Big Three by any stretch of the imagination. Holiday shot 4-20 from the field in Game 4, Middleton was 5-16 in Game 2, and Antetokounmpo only hit 4 of 11 free throws in Game 5, including missing three in the final 1:09 of a 4-point victory. But when the Bucks have needed them most, they’ve taken turns rising to the moment.

Middleton has been the shot-making extraordinaire. No matter how the first three quarters have gone for him–good, bad or otherwise–he’s hit huge shots both in the fourth and down the stretch of tight games. His ability to get to his sweet spots on the court has been lightly deterred and he’s been able to use his often forgot about 6-foot-8 height to shoot over defenders when he gets there.

He’s averaging 25.4 points per game in the NBA Finals–his career-high for any playoff series is 25.6 back against the Miami Heat in the 2020 Eastern Conference semi-finals against the Miami Heat. His composure under pressure has been impressive and he’s killing the Phoenix Suns in the pick-and-roll game when Antetokounmpo is the screener. He’s been a hot and cold shooter throughout his career–and has experienced those same mini-streaks in this series alone–but he’s come on hot when the Bucks have needed him most.

The Milwaukee Bucks big three of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday are proving to be worth every penny in the NBA Finals.

Holiday was Milwaukee’s huge acquisition last offseason that was supposed to push them over the hump after two disappointing postseasons…and he’s done just that.

His offensive game has come and gone–mostly gone–but his defensive effort has never faltered. He’s taken turns putting Chris Paul and Devin Booker in jail. He’s quick enough to pressure them 75 feet from the basket and strong enough to (legally) bully them when they try to drive toward the hoop.

His biggest play of the series came in the most crucial moment in Game 5. With the Suns trailing by one point with fewer than 30 seconds remaining in the game, Booker isolated against P.J. Tucker and took him off the bounce. After hop-stepping and pump-faking at the left block, Holiday swarmed him before ripping the ball right out of Booker’s hands. This led to the gutsiest play of the series when Holiday flew up court before hesitating by the left-wing, drawing the lone Suns’ defender toward him. He then lofted the ball high above the rim where the sprinting Antetokounmpo caught it and threw it down with the harm from Paul.

Holiday had a brilliant performance in Game 5 following the worst of his playoff run in Game 4. He finished with 27 points on 12-20 shooting, 13 assists, three steals, one block and just two turnovers. That was his signature moment as a member of the Bucks’ in the biggest game of his career (at least up to this point).

Last, but certainly not least, is Antetokounmpo. His consistent play has paced the Bucks throughout this series and he’s been consistently great at both ends of the court.

After a somewhat quiet Game 1, he dropped 40 or more points in back-to-back contests, the second one coming in Milwaukee’s first victory of the series. Since then, he’s quietly put up good numbers while making loud impact plays in the biggest moments. In Game 4, he had the “Sun Block” on a DeAndre Ayton alley-oop attempt that was. critical stop in the game’s waning moments. In Game 5, he finished the oop to give Milwaukee a defining three-point lead in the final seconds.

No matter how Middleton and Holiday have performed, Antetokounmpo has been the constant Milwaukee can count on. That’s what separates the stars from the superstars. The Bucks know they can always count on the MVP and he delivers time after time.

When the Bucks’ Big Three is clicking like they were on Saturday night there is little the opposing team can do about it. The Suns posted a 129.3 offensive rating in Game 5–that would’ve led the top-ranked Brooklyn Nets by 10 points in the regular season–but it didn’t matter because they couldn’t get stops.

88 points. 20 rebounds. 24 assists.

Those were the combined Game 5 totals for Holiday, Middleton and Antetokounmpo. Milwaukee has gone deep into their pockets for the foreseeable future to commit to this trio being a championship core. And as they are now within just one game of an NBA Championship, they are proving to be worth every penny.