Rapid Recap: Bucks 129, Hawks 115

On a day where most Wisconsin sports fans were preoccupied with the disappointment that befell the Green Bay Packers, the Milwaukee Bucks won handily against the Atlanta Hawks, 129-115.

NBA.com Box Score

The game kicked off with a flurry of bricks for both teams, but Milwaukee broke open a decent lead about halfway through the opening quarter. Our first highlight wasn’t a rim-shattering dunk or an ankle-breaker dribble leading to a three...but the Bucks’ actually checking reserve wing Torrey Craig into the game. On purpose!

Craig must have been the Bucks’ secret sauce they’ve been lacking for these first fifteen games, because the first quarter was an absolute blowout, ending with a 32-15 advantage for Milwaukee, and it only got worse by halftime, with the Bucks holding a 66-47 lead and shooting 60% from the field. The second half saw things tighten up a fair amount but it never truly felt close. Sure, Trae Young, Clint Capela, and Bogdan Bogdanovic all missed the game, but it was simply a hefty Bucks lead much of the night.

Stat That Stood Out

It might have come off as a joke, but Torrey Craig entering the game in the first quarter was a legitimately pleasant surprise. Milwaukee had more downtime since their last contest due to the Wizards game getting postponed, but no one necessarily expected Thanasis Antetokounmpo to draw a DNP-CD in this contest while Craig got exposed to NBA rotation-level basketball as a Buck. To his credit, Torrey Craig played under control and even showed off some nifty passing on offense, and his presence as a defense-first wing might make the team a bit smaller but it also gives them a controlled dynamism on both sides of the ball that may be a trend worth watching going forward.

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