NBA Finals Game 6 Post-game

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Career-Defining Performance From Giannis Carries Bucks to Championship

Giannis Antetokounmpo, have a moment. The Milwaukee superstar took an already exceptional series performance to legendary heights on Tuesday night with a 50-point, 14-rebound, and 5-block stat line. In what proved to be one of the best NBA Finals games in my memory, Giannis' performance stood miles above the competition as he carried the Bucks to a championship-clinching 105-98 victory over the Phoenix Suns.

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Game Summary

Boy, were there some nerves in the building to start this game. The teams combined for more tunrovers (five) than points (4) over the first three minutes of the first quarter before eventually settling into a less sloppy back-and-forth, though the Suns remained cold from the field for the rest of the quarter. Milwaukee continued attacking the paint as they had for the majority of the series, and pursuing easy buckets down low proved fruitful. A taut, nervous Fiserv Forum crowd exploded with each successive bucket as they witnessed their team construct a 13 point advantage to close the first stanza.

Much like Game 5, but with the team roles reversed, the Suns immediately responded to the Bucks' strong quarter with a run of their own, rattling off ten straight points to open the second quarter. Bench contributors Cam Payne and Cam Johnson catalyzed the run, and Phoenix was instantly back in the game. The teams largely traded blows for the rest of the half, but the Suns' balanced attack slightly outpaced the scoring mustered by Antetokounmpo and Milwaukee energy man Bobby Portis (who was terrific in this game). Chris Paul scored or assisted on 12 of the Suns' last 16 points to close the half, and Phoenix ended the half with a five point edge.

The third quarter is when Giannis ascended to an all-time level as he recorded his second 20-point quarter of the series. With a blend of fearsome yet agile drives, deft shooting touch, and unfamiliar comfortability at the free throw line, the Milwaukee star carried the offense for the duration of the quarter while also rising to meet every challenge thrown his way on the defensive end. The Suns simultaneously rose to the occasion as a team, preventing the outburst from spiraling into a deficit. In what was a decidedly weak overall performance from young Phoenix star Devin Booker while being guarded by Jrue Holiday, the third quarter yielded his best offensive output of the game (11 points in the quarter). The game headed into the final quarter knotted up at 77 points apiece.

If the third quarter represented Giannis' ascension to new heights, the fourth quarter exemplified his staying power at such a level. With Phoenix clawing toward stealing a pivotal game on the road, the Bucks pounded the ball inside to Antetokounmpo repeatedly, and he seemingly always delivered. Of the shots he didn't finish, he seemed to always corral the offensive rebound and allow the Bucks to reset their offense to send it back down to him again. In this performance, though, we finally saw the potential for both Antetokounmpo and the Bucks team as a whole if Giannis can become even moderately proficient at the free throw line. Likely the most debilitating aspect of Giannis' game has been his weakness at the free throw line, which causes him to play timidly in late game moments (and even throughout the game) to avoid being sent to the line. In Game 6, his 17-19 (89%) mark from the line left the Suns flabbergasted when it came to defending him, especially in the late game. When he is not a decided liability from the foul stripe, he is virtually impossible to defend consistently, and the Bucks' greatest late-game weakness is taken completely off the table. Couple that development with a couple dagger shots by Khris Middleton in the game's final minutes, and this series was over. A truly valiant effort from the Suns and their leader Chris Paul ultimately came up short, and Milwaukee now has its first NBA title in 50 years. Giannis was deservedly awarded the Finals MVP after a legendary series.

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A Few Thoughts

• Khris Middleton, while certainly not the alpha on his team, came up big in the biggest moments. He's won me over some in this series, and I look forward to seeing his evolution as a player in the future with a champion's mentality.

• Devin Booker was excellent at times in this series, but he's not there yet as a superstar. He can score and make shots with the best of them already, but his relatively one-dimensional game (that's probably extreme, but not too far off) limits him from being a true impact player in each game. However, I am extremely optimistic for his future as a Kobe-esque scorer. He's not Kobe, but his scoring acumen is not unlike the Black Mamba.

• Jrue Holiday is an absolutely sensational defensive player.

• Chris Paul gave the Suns about an A- performance. I've been hard on him in some of my previous posts, but he wasn't the reason the Suns lost Game 6. As a basketball fan, it is sobering to acknowledge that this was likely his final shot at a title as a core contributor. He was sensational this year, and he deserves all the credit in the world for reinventing and reinvigorating himself to even reach the heights he did this year. He's an all-timer, and I hope we get more opportunities to see him shine on big stages.

• This Finals series turned out to be probably the best Finals series since the 2016 Cavs/Warriors clash. Beyond the supernova that was Giannis Antetokounmpo, the two-way brilliance of both teams made each game incredibly pleasing to watch, and the electricity in each home arena was palpable even through the TV. The series yielded several iconic moments (unfortunately for Phoenix, they all happened to favor Milwaukee), and the fact that both of these teams and almost all of the players that populate them are new to the stage brought a freshness that I believe the NBA was lacking in the past few years.

• The Jalen Smith pick by Phoenix in the most recent NBA draft was an abomination. Holy cow. How can he be so bad that they can't even get him some minutes when their front court is as deep as the plot to an Adam Sandler movie? For a franchise that seemingly made all the right moves to reach this point, yikes.

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Stock Watch

Stock Up: Giannis Antetokounmpo

He was sensational for the first five games. He became the best player in the NBA in Game 6.

Stock Down: Deandre Ayton

It's honestly a testament to his development as a player in these playoffs that this game seemed so poor, but he was not good tonight. Between missing shots he routinely makes, fumbling passes, and being dominated in the paint (albeit by the most physically-imposing player in the league at this point), Ayton showed that he's not quite yet ready for this stage. I'm still a big believer, but tonight showed that he's not as far along the path to stardom as we might have thought previously.

Stock Up: Mike Budenholzer

Give it up for Mike! For a coach that may have been one half of a shoe size away from being fired (seriously), Coach Bud put together a tremendous series. Notorious for being slow to adjust, Budenholzer deftly addressed key aspects of the Bucks' defensive scheme to limit the production from Phoenix's backcourt that crushed them in their first two losses (particularly Game 1). It's hard to imagine he'll be going anywhere else in the near future besides the Milwaukee bench unless he wants to.

Stock Down: Phoenix's Chance for a Title

This was their year, plain and simple. Chris Paul isn't getting any younger, their young stars aren't getting any cheaper, and the number of legitimate teams in both conferences isn't getting any smaller. I think Phoenix was a team worthy of a championship had they won, but I am exceedingly skeptical that they will be dealt a hand as favorable as the one they had this year in the playoffs. Unless Booker and Ayton both elevate their games immensely ahead of schedule, I don't see their title window opening wide. Barring a rash of injuries decimating a plethora of contending teams next year, the Suns should be happy if they make the Conference Finals and are competitive. It's odd because they're simultaneously probably a year ahead of schedule yet likely not going to get a better chance in the future. I'll take a deeper dive into this in the offseason.

Stock Up: Bucks Fans

Just look at these pictures and watch this video. Small market teams have awesome fanbases too, NBA media.

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Final Thoughts

Great series, great performances, and great fans. Truly one of the more enjoyably championship sporting events I've watched in recent memory. I think the NBA is better when teams like these Bucks and these Suns are representing the league than current iterations of superteams like the the Nets and the Lakers. Nobody knows how next season will go, but at least this season yielded a great, competitive Finals between two excellent teams that were built the right way in markets that aren't traditional NBA pillars. Contrary to most media narratives I heard throughout the playoffs, I think that's good for the future of the league.