As Jrue Holiday led a spirited Bucks charge in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, Kendrick Perkins put CP3 under the scanner after a series of turnovers.
Advertisement
The Milwaukee Bucks displayed great character and composure after going 35-21 down in the first quarter. With the Suns blocking out Giannis’ easy routes to the bucket, it fell to Holiday and Middleton to come up big tonight.
And come up big they did, as Jrue produced a vintage two-way display of point guard play to get the Bucks back in the game during the 2nd quarter. Middleton helped carry the load more as the game progressed and he got hot himself.
Milwaukee poured in 79 points in the 2nd and 3rd quarters combined. They held a 10-point lead entering the 4th quarter as the Suns battled some inconsistent offensive stretches.
“CP3 needs CPR”: Kendrick Perkins criticizes Chris Paul before a clutch 4 quarter
Chris Paul seems to be battling some sort of hand injury at the moment. His turnover problems came back into play during this lean stretch for the Suns.
They needed CP3 to be back in his best form, and to his credit, Paul was responsible for many of the improvements that the Suns made on both ends in the 4th. Switching Middleton’s matchup to CP3 helped to stem the bleeding mid-way through the period.
Paul got 10 points and 2 dimes during the period, including a crucial layup to cut the Bucks’ lead to 1. The Point God’s layup over Pat Connaughton’s defense forced coach Budenholzer to call a timeout with 56.6s left.
However, despite the Suns’ excellent defense on the next possessions, a costly turnover by Devin Booker put paid to their hopes of a comeback. Jrue Holiday, who was the MVP of the night, pulled off a steal on DBook.
The defensive ace set in motion a fast break that ended with Giannis finishing an alley-oop dunk. His perfect dime and the resulting and-1 play took enough time off the clock for their missed free throws not to matter.
His display in the 4th quarter was as ‘unconscious’ – in NBA slang – as it gets.
Kendrick Perkins definitely did not see this coming as he tweeted this during the 3rd quarter of the game. However, Chris Paul’s display will not be of any consolation to him given the L they took.
CP3 needs CPR!!! Carry on…
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) July 18, 2021