Jrue Holiday put the Bucks on his back in the first-half
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton were both great in Game 5 and without them, the Milwaukee Bucks would not have stolen this game in Phoenix, but Jrue Holiday was the MVP of this game and without him, they would not have been able to come back in the first-half.
As mentioned earlier, the Bucks trailed the Suns by 16 points after one quarter and it was looking like the Suns would blow out the Bucks in Game 5, but Jrue Holiday put his team on his back and he single-handedly carried Milwaukee through the first-half of play.
After shooting just 2-4 from the floor in the first quarter, Jrue Holiday really turned things on in the second quarter, shooting 6-7 from the floor, including 2-2 from long-range, and he had a total of 18 points, 7 assists at halftime. His contributions on the offensive-end of the floor were huge for the Bucks in the first-half and they would not have been able to get themselves back in this game without him.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was on the bench for the first six minutes of play in the second quarter and Khris Middleton started the game just 1-7 from the floor, so Holiday had to step up for this team. Not only was he able to find success knocking down jumpers from the mid-range and three-point areas, but Holiday did an excellent job of attacking the Suns in pick-and-roll sets all night long.
Phoenix had no answers for defending Jrue Holiday in the pick-and-roll, which is why he finished the game with 27 points on 12-20 shooting and 13 assists. Not only was he great offensively, but Holiday was fantastic defensively once again.
READ MORE: 3 key matchups to watch in the Bucks-Suns 2021 NBA Finals
Known as being one of the premier two-way guards in the league, Jrue Holiday made a difference once again on the defensive-end of the floor guarding Chris Paul and containing him pretty much the entire game. Taking Paul out of the game early was a big plus for the Bucks, but Holiday was also able to take on Devin Booker defensively at times and force bad shots from Booker.
Being able to turn defense into instant offense in transition was how the Bucks were able to claw their way back into this game in the second quarter and this was in large part because of Jrue Holiday’s ability to affect shots. Whether it was forcing a turnover or forcing a bad shot, Holiday immediately turned his attention to the Bucks’ fast break opportunities and capitalized possession after possession.
In Game 6, Phoenix is going to have to try and find an answer for Jrue Holiday because they cannot let him get going like this again. Entering Game 5, Holiday was only averaging 15.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 8.0 assists, but if he is going to have another performance like he did on Saturday night, then this series will be over in six games for Milwaukee.
The Bucks traded for Jrue Holiday prior to the start of this season with the mindset that he was their missing piece in terms of winning a championship and his Game 5 performance has put the Milwaukee Bucks one win away from making this statement come true.
