Which Celtics Will Get The Arduous Task Of Trying To Slow Down Giannis?
By Matthew Geagan, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Celtics have a great early season test on Wednesday night when the Milwaukee Bucks and reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo come to town. The only problem, and one that most teams around the NBA share with Boston, is who the heck is going to slow down "The Greek Freak" for Boston?
While the overall results didn't show, the Celtics were able to pester Antetokounmpo during their five-game postseason loss in the second round last season. And by pestering, that means they kept him to under 22 points in two of the five games. In their only win of the series, the Celtics held him Antetokounmpo to 7-for-21 shooting. Their 1-0 series lead was great for the 50 or so hours it lasted.
The big difference five months ago was that Al Horford and Aron Baynes were around to help set up a wall to keep Giannis from trucking his way to the basket with an unparalleled sense of ease. And even with them around, that wall had plenty of craters in it.
Both are gone, leaving a few giant Giannis-sized holes in Boston's frontcourt defense. Center Enes Kanter isn't known for his defensive prowess, but he would have given the Celtics a big body to throw Antetokounmpo's way. But he's out with a knee injury that he suffered in the season opener in Philadelphia. Fellow center Daniel Theis, another big who isn't necessarily known for his defense, is a game-time decision with an ankle injury.
Robert Williams will get some looks walling up against Giannis, but he doesn't have the defensive patience (or build) to deal with Antetokounmpo's array of powerful moves to the cup. Most of Williams' defense happens after someone starts their drive to the basket, and if he waits that long on Antetokounmpo, the freak is going to look even more freakish on Wednesday night.
French export Vincent Poirier could potentially fill Baynes' role against Antetokounmpo thanks to his size and speed, but he's played just six minutes of NBA basketball, tallying a pair of fouls. Against Giannis, he may foul out in half that time.
So what is Brad Stevens to do? None of his bigs are equipped to really slow the best player in the league, so he'll have to do what he loves the most: Go small. He'll likely turn to his athletic wings to disrupt Antetokounmpo, which had some mixed results last season. But in this case, mixed results are better than no results.
In the first three games of the season, Antetokounmpo's scoring has been that of a mere mortal, averaging 24.9 points off 53 percent shooting. Adding in his 13.3 rebounds and nine assists is what elevates his stature to Adonis levels.
"He's the most special guy end-to-end in the league," Stevens said of Antetokounmpo. "Ultimately there's very few people over the course of time in the NBA that strike fear in you like he does when he's going full-court."
Basically, Stevens is going to throw everything he can at Antetokounmpo. Jaylen Brown had been playing out of his mind on both ends of the floor to start the season, and will be tested when he finds himself up against Antetokounmpo. It's the kind of matchup the fourth-year guard relishes, especially since he expects the Celtics and Bucks to be meeting again when games really matter.
"The potential chess game starts now," the whimsical Brown said Tuesday.
Update: Jaylen Brown is sick and will not play against the Bucks
Brown will be just one of Stevens' many pawns on Wednesday. Semi Ojeleye has yet to thrive in that "Giannis Stopper" role, but he has gigantic muscles and six fouls to give. Sending Antetokounmpo to the line isn't always the worst play, either, as he's shooting just 53.6 percent from the charity stripe this season.
Marcus Smart will also find himself sent out to pester Antetokounmpo, and he now has another undersized running mate in rookie Grant Williams. Williams likely isn't prepared for what awaits should he find himself on Antetokounmpo, but the rookie is a smart player who can jostle with bigger players. And if all else fails, he and Smart can break out a "Night At The Roxbury" impression to try and knock Antetokounmpo off his game. If Giannis is able to do what he usually does, the game could get that silly anyways.
No one on the Celtics is going to stop Antetokounmpo. The entire team probably won't stop him, and they'll have varying degrees of success just slowing him down. He'll still likely end up with 50 points, no matter what the Celtics do or don't do on defense.
But Wednesday night is their first of four regular season matchups with Giannis and the Bucks, an early opportunity to try anything and everything to decelerate one of the NBA's most gifted offensive players. And if they don't let Antetkounmpo's supporting cast beat them, as they did last April, the Celtics may even sneak a win on Wednesday.