Modern defenses are built around containing dribble penetration. The best defenses utilize specific schemes combined with elite ball defenders to block off ball handlers from reaching the paint.
The Bucks ran a lineup with Dame, Cam Payne, and Malik Beasley. They had Beasley guarding Trae. Brook and Giannis will not be enough to cover so many defensive liabilities.
Bucks walk away from this game with a lot to figure out regarding their rosters defensive limitations. They didn’t just lose two great ball defenders in Jrue and Carter, they also added two real liabilities in Dame and Payne. Middleton and Beauchamp give them size on the wing but I don’t see a single guy on this roster that’s frustrating opposing ball handlers.
Dame is (and has been) one of the worst defenders in the league and his reputation somehow was nowhere near as bad as it should’ve been in that end. Now that he is on a team with huge expectations, casuals should catch on and media should be more fair in calling him out. He deserves as much criticism as someone like Trae. He simply does not try on many possessions.
Fully agreed. He got away with it because people generally like him, but he’s always been a massive defensive liability.
No one took POR seriously so it wasn’t as obvious, didn’t need to hunt Dame down when the whole team wasn’t great. Different story in MIL
The foul baiting has made it 10X worse too because he doesn’t get back on defense, just stands in front of the refs with his arms up.