Charles Barkley commends Blake Griffin for how he played against the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 1 following the James Harden injury.
The Brooklyn Nets had a roller coaster of a game in Game 1 of their series against the Milwaukee Bucks. 43 seconds into the bout, James Harden exited the game and did not return due to a strained right hamstring. This of course gave a significant scare to all nets fans in attendance but were soon relieved of some tension after watching Blake Griffin go off for 18 points and 14 rebounds.
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Despite the fact that guys like Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Joe Harris all scored more than Griffin, it was the way in which he got his points that was undoubtedly very impressive. With Jeff Green out due to injury, Blake Griffin took over the role of stretching the floor and did so quite well as he rained down 4 3s, bringing Giannis out to the perimeter to take away the help defense.
Blake Griffin also had a bevy of hustle plays that got the bench and his teammates on the court fired up, leading to several momentum changes.
Charles Barkley claims Blake Griffin was the difference maker for the Brooklyn Nets last night.
Charles Barkley took to the NBAonTNT show last night to break down who he felt had a significant impact on the game last night. He came to the conclusion that Blake Griffin was the x-factor for the Nets and commended him for the way he played.
The Milwaukee Bucks were living off of second chance points in Game 1 but this didn’t stop Blake from grabbing 14 rebounds, of which 2 were on the offensive end of the floor. Though he did seem to have trouble guarding Giannis Antetokounmpo last night due to the athletic mismatch, it should be noted that the Nets don’t have the personnel to guard the 2x MVP in the first place.
With Jeff Green still on the mend, the Nets will most definitely need games where Blake Griffin spaces the floor, opening up the defense.
