The 2021 NBA Finals was the most exciting Finals fans have seen in the last few seasons. The only two Finals that could be better than this one were the 2016 Finals, where LeBron’s Cavaliers came back from a 3-1 lead on a 73-win Warriors squad to win their first ever championship, and 2013, where Ray Allen’s improbable corner 3-point shot in Game 6 forced a Game 7 where the Heat would repeat as champions of the basketball world. As with both of those examples, the 2021 version had some unforgettable moments along the way. In Game 4, Giannis Antetokounmpo blocked a potential alley-oop dunk by Deandre Ayton that would flip the whole series on its head at 2-2. In Game 5, Jrue Holiday stole the ball from a driving Devin Booker and at the other end, Holiday lobbed it up to Giannis who slammed it home and put the game on ice. But, now that the Bucks won the series and the confetti in Fiserv Forum is finished falling, let’s take some time to reflect on how these Finals dictated certain players’ legacies and an outlook for both teams heading into next season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is a top 30 player of all-time because of this championship. Let me just list out some accolades to tell you why. He’s a 5x All-Star, 2x MVP, and Defensive Player of the Year while being on an All-NBA list 5 times and an All-Defensive list 4 times. Add a NBA championship to that and it puts Giannis in a upper echelon of players who have an unbelievable trophy case at age 26. But, he’s called the Greek Freak for a reason. He can be a huge problem to guard when he’s driving in the paint, especially when he does his patented eurostep to get past the last line of defense. But it wasn’t always that easy to get by people like that. As a kid growing up in Greece with his parents and three brothers, he sold DVD’s on the streets and had to grind through poverty to chase the NBA. Coming into the league in 2013, he seemed to be a scrawny 19 year-old kid at 196 lbs and didn’t know where to turn next. Eight years later, he gained an extra 46 lbs of muscle and a stronger basketball IQ and is now an NBA champion. An all-time great story for an all-time great player.
Khris Middleton has officially proven that he can be a legitimate player in this league, especially in the clutch. Middleton was a forgotten player in the NBA for a long time. He was alright but didn’t have the right chances to prove himself when it mattered most. But, in these playoffs, particularly in the Finals, he reversed that narrative on its head. In 23 playoff games, he averaged 23.6 points per game, 7.6 rebounds per game, and 5.1 assists per game while shooting 43.8% from the field, 34.3% from the three point line, and 88.7% from the free throw line. Let’s list some of the individual stat lines for Middleton in these playoffs. In the Bucks first playoff game against the Miami Heat, 2 of his 27 points were from a game-winning fadeaway jumper with 2 seconds left in overtime to win the game, 109-107. In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Nets, he had 35 points and 15 rebounds. In Game 6 of that same series, he had 38 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks, he had 38 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists. In the Finals-clinching Game 6, he had 32 points. By these stats, you could tell that he was a borderline superstar, but in Game 4 of the Finals, that’s where he burst onto the scene. He dropped 40 points while shooting 45.5% from the field and 37.5% from the three point area. Oh, one more thing. Middleton had 18 clutch points this season, according to NBA.com’s Advanced Stats. That means the Bucks can rely on someone other than Giannis to take the final shot. Although Khris Middleton is forgotten no more, the new question to be asked about him is, could he keep these numbers consistent and not have this season be a fluke?
Jrue Holiday was the difference in the Milwaukee Bucks winning their 1st championship in a half century. About a month before this 72-game season began, a 4-team trade was announced. Steven Adams, Eric Bledsoe, and 4 first-round picks were headed to the New Orleans Pelicans. George Hill, Zylan Cheatham, Josh Gray, Darius Miller, Kenrich Williams, and a future 1st-round pick were going to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Denver Nuggets received R.J Hampton (who would eventually be traded again to the Magic for Aaron Gordon) and the 24th overall pick. But, most importantly, the Bucks got Jrue Holiday, Sam Merrill and the 60th overall pick. When I first saw this trade, I was very intrigued to see how Holiday would fit into that system. Let’s just say he fit in perfectly. With all due respect to Bledsoe, Holiday was a much needed upgrade for a team trying to get to the top of the mountain. He’s the best defender at the point guard position, while bringing decent offense if you need him to score. In the playoffs, he averaged 17.3 points per game, 8.7 assists per game, and 5.7 rebounds per game while shooting 40.6% from the field, 30.3% from the three point line, and 71.4% from the free throw line. But, the one stat I want you, the reader, to look at is his steals. Once in every series, he’s reached 4 steals in 1 game. That means he really stepped up on defense, especially in the Finals. Holiday stopped Suns guards Chris Paul and Devin Booker from getting to their spots. Because when they start getting to their spots and making shots, the Suns win games. So, Holiday was able to read that like the oldest trick in the book and really held his own. Now that Holiday has won his 1st ever NBA championship, he’s not some underrated and overlooked player anymore. He’ll be looked at as one of the best two-way players this league has to offer.
Do the Bucks really need to do anything this offseason? I don’t think so. I think they should begin to re-sign some of their free agent role players like P.J Tucker and Bobby Portis and try to create magic in Milwaukee all over again. Now, it will be tougher to get through the East next year because the Brooklyn Nets will be a healthy juggernaut trying to get a championship of their own. And the Philadelphia 76ers will be trying to get their monkey of never winning a championship with Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid off of their backs. But, now let’s look at the Suns and what they need to do to get back at the top.
These Finals will be Chris Paul’s last chance at trying to win a championship and will never win one in his career. I know, steaming hot take right? But, hear me out. Every time he’s been in the playoffs in his career, he always finds some way to mess it all up and start again from square one the next season. With his career with the then New Orleans Hornets, he brought them to the playoffs three times. 2008, 2009 and 2011. In all three instances, he couldn’t get past the second round. In his 6 seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers, and I’m talking Lob City Clippers, he only got past the first round 3 times. With the Houston Rockets in 2018, he made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals with 3-2 lead on the 2nd-seeded Warriors. Unfortunately, he came down with a hamstring injury in Game 5. This would take him out of Games 6 and 7, where the Warriors won both games by a combined point differential of -38. The next season they faced the Warriors again, but this time in the second round. The Rockets would lose this series in 6 games. And, in the Orlando bubble last season, Paul’s new team, the Thunder, lost in 7 games to the Rockets. So, when he decided to get traded to Phoenix, there was excitement but if they made the playoffs, will those demons come back to haunt Chris Paul. In the first 3 rounds, it seemed like they were temporarily exorcised. The Suns were 12-4 in their first 16 games and Paul averaged 18.1 points per game and 8.7 assists per game while shooting 47% from the field, 40.5% from the three point line, and 90.6% from the free throw line during that stretch. Then, the Finals came and in the first two games, it wasn’t that bad. He dropped 32 points in Game 1 and 23 in Game 2. But, the next 4 games were absolutely atrocious. He averaged 3.3 turnovers per game and 4 personal fouls per game. That means he was turning the ball over and fouling at a WAY higher rate than in the first 3 rounds. Just off of stats, unfortunate events and an 0-13 record when Scott Foster is the chief referee, Chris Paul will sadly never win a championship in his career.
Devin Booker is now one of the best players in the NBA. He’s proven time and time again that he should be in this discussion. But, in these playoffs, he’s cemented that claim. After 4 20+ win seasons and a too-little-too-late 8-0 run in the bubble in 2020, this was Booker’s first chance to show what he could do on the world’s biggest stage. And, boy did he show out. In a closeout Game 6 against the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1st round, he had 47 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists. In a closeout Game 4 the next round against the Denver Nuggets, he had 34 points and 11 rebounds. In Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, he dropped a 40 point triple double, along with 13 rebounds and 11 assists. In Game 4 of the NBA Finals, he had 42 points and went basket-for-basket with Khris Middleton. The next game, he dropped 40 points. So, in both of those games, he dropped a combined 82 points and lost both games by 7 points or fewer. Those two performances, along with the others that I mentioned, prove that when Booker is locked in, he’s unstoppable and can carry a team on his back. If not for a few bounces that went the Bucks’ way, we could be looking at a completely different series.
What should the Suns do this offseason? 3 things. Number 1: Trade for a big fish in the water. Number 2: Sign a formidable backup center. And number 3. Improve Deandre Ayton more. Now, what’s that big fish in the water? Damian Lillard. Yet another fiery hot take! Now, I saw someone suggest a Lillard to Suns trade that sends Chris Paul, Mikail Bridges, and 4 1st round picks to Portland. To me, that makes sense. Lillard is looking to come to a winning culture, and although Phoenix is in the beginning stages of that, the signs are there. They were 2 games away from winning their 1st title in franchise history, and right now, this is their best chance. They have a fantastic front office, led by recently announced Executive of the Year, James Jones. Plus, they have a spectacular coaching staff, with should’ve-been Coach of the Year winner Monty Williams leading the charge. Finally, the Suns have one of the best young cores in the NBA along with one of the best benches in the league. Add those 5 qualities in the discussion and I think that Phoenix is an enticing situation. If this actually happens, the Suns become instant title contenders. On the other side, the Blazers’ situation is nothing new to Chris Paul. He can mentor C.J McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic just like he mentored Booker and Ayton this year. Additionally, the Blazers have needed a legitimate small forward for a long time but didn’t really pan out so Bridges would be a much needed addition to that position. Overall, this trade could change the course of both of these teams. In terms of who to sign at the backup center, two names come to mind. Dewayne Dedmon and Cody Zeller. To me, the best pick out of those two is Zeller. His best season was in 2019-20 where he averaged 11.1 points per game and 7.1 rebounds per game. If the Suns can get him back to that level of play, Zeller could be a serviceable backup when Ayton needs rest. And speaking of Ayton, he still needs to improve. In the first 3 rounds of playoffs this year, he averaged 16.2 points per game and 11.8 rebounds per game. He also had 11 games where he had 10+ boards, and 1 where he had 20+. If the Suns coaching staff can continue to work Ayton on showing up when the lights shine the brightest, the Suns could really have a consistent, dominant force on their hands.