Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks Matchup Of The Night: Jimmy Butler vs. Giannis Antetokounmpo
The Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks are coming off blowout losses to the Minnesota Timberwolves and Atlanta Hawks ahead of their Monday evening matchup.
Heat superstar Jimmy Butler rested against the Timberwolves to further prepare for the Bucks. Meanwhile, Giannis Antetokounmpo is fresh off a 26-point and 11-rebound performance in a loss to the Hawks. Superstar Damian Lillard struggled against Atlanta, finishing the game with six points and five assists on 16.7 percent shooting.
This is the first time Butler and Antetokounmpo are facing off since the Heat defeated the Bucks in last year’s playoffs. Butler dominated the series, leading both teams in scoring in four out of the five games. He led Miami to the NBA Finals before losing to the Denver Nuggets.
Antetokounmpo was dealing with an injury against the Heat, only appearing in three of the games. He is looking for revenge following the upset. With the help of Lillard, Miami is in jeopardy of starting the season with a 1-3 record.
Butler commented on the matchup after the Heat’s regular-season opener.
“So you really get to get tested early on with the guys that we about to go up against," Butler said. "Talk about some extremely talented guys, some championship-caliber teams. It'll be fun.”
This game could act as a preview for the Eastern Conference Finals.
Western Conference Recap: LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers Fall Short To Sacramento Kings In Overtime
Anthony Pasciolla works as a contributing writer to Inside the Heat.
TikTok: @allthingsheat
Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook here
Subscribe to our YouTube channel here
He can be reached at ampasciolla@gmail.com or follow him on Instagram @anthonypasci