Kevin Durant has 42, but Giannis torches Nets for 49 in playoff preview

Let him shoot.

In a nutshell, that was the Nets’ defensive game plan against two-time reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, who looked more like Giannis Nowitzki in Milwaukee’s 117-114 win over Brooklyn on Sunday.

It’s no secret that Antetokounmpo is arguably the league’s best inside scorer — yes, better than LeBron James, and yes, better than Kyrie Irving — and the Nets game planned to keep him away from the basket and crowded in transition.

They couldn’t have imagined what was to come.

Antetokounmpo, who has improved his previously weak shooting this season, hung 49 points on the Nets on 21-of-36 shooting from the floor. He shot 4-of-8 from three, more threes than he’s made in any game since Dec. 2019 against the Los Angeles Lakers.

“I think we could live with that. What we can’t live with is all the dunks, offensive rebounds, transition buckets,” said Nets head coach Steve Nash. “You live with the shooting. Here we are, he had 50 and we have a shot to tie, we didn’t play well. Although he was sensational tonight, I think the game plan was fine. It’s about all the other things that we can clean up in order to give ourselves a better chance.”

Maybe Antetokounmpo raises his game for the best of the best.

Or maybe the Nets need to find a better solution to take the freak out of the Greek. The Nets deployed DeAndre Jordan, who did not guard Antetokounmpo outside of 15 feet from the rim. Antetokounmpo made his open shots, challenged Jordan at the rim, and also hit a flurry of fading mid-range jump shots over Jordan’s arms.

Jordan, however, may be the Nets’ best option. Blake Griffin and Jeff Green give up size, Nic Claxton gives up strength and experience, and if you need a big scoring night out of Kevin Durant, you don’t want him guarding one of the league’s most physical players.

Bucks-Nets was a chess match between Nash and Mike Budenholzer, a head coach revered as one of the best minds in basketball. Budenholzer made sure PJ Tucker, James Harden’s former Rockets teammate, was the primary defender on Durant, who still got his. Durant saw Tucker and raised him 42 points in 40 minutes, hitting tough shot after tough shot. Durant, however, couldn’t hit the shot that would have sent the game to overtime: a fading look off an inbounds pass that ricocheted off right iron as time expired.

The Bucks didn’t need a chess master at head coach, however, to put themselves in the best position to slow down Kyrie Irving, who shot just 8-of-21 largely smothered by Jrue Holiday, one of the league’s best perimeter defenders.

The Nets have a day off before they run it back against the Bucks again on Tuesday, and both teams will be sharper having played and studied the opponent in consecutive days. One thing that won’t help the Nets? Harden’s hamstring, which continues to keep Brooklyn’s floor general off the floor.

His return will give the Bucks a different kind of offense to face should the two teams meet in the playoffs.