Milwaukee Bucks ‘still learning each other’ after comprehensive loss to the Atlanta Hawks

MILWAUKEE – After an impressive debut, Damian Lillard said he is still learning to co-exist with his new teammates, after hosts Milwaukee Bucks were routed 127-110 in a wire-to-wire defeat by the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday.

The seven-time National Basketball Association All-Star, who last Thursday scored 39 points for the highest-scoring debut in Bucks history in their season-opening win over the Philadelphia 76ers, suffered through his worst offensive performance since Nov 5, 2021.

Then, he shot two-of-13 from the floor for four points.

On Sunday, Lillard went two of 12 for six points, and was scoreless until the second half for the first time since 2020. He also conceded six turnovers.

The 33-year-old guard told ESPN: “We’re still learning each other. It’s a process of when I do have a start like this or have a game like this, how do I find it without holding on to the ball?

“That’s part of the process. It’s just our second game. We haven’t played a bunch of games together. I think as we go, we’ll figure that out and get better at it.

“You don’t want to have these types of games, but they happen. Now we just got to learn from them.”

Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee with 26 points and 11 rebounds.

Said the Greek forward of his teammate’s poor shooting night: “I know how good he is. At the end of the day, we need him to keep shooting, we need him to keep on being great.

“Obviously, we didn’t win the game, but he’s our guy now.

“It’s game two. It’s very, very early. We’re still figuring ourselves out. We’re figuring out what we are good at, what we are not good at.”

Hawks coach Quin Snyder admitted “you can’t guard Damian Lillard with one guy” but Bucks coach Adrian Griffin said his team have to “make teams pay” for double-teaming their star point guard.

Trae Young led eight Atlanta scorers in double figures with 20 points as the Hawks pounced early, building a 15-point lead less than nine minutes into the game.

Milwaukee cut the deficit to one early into the second quarter, but runs of 18-4 and 13-3 in the period put the Hawks firmly in control.

The visitors shot 47 of 93 from the floor, including 15 of 37 from three-point range, led by Bogdan Bogdanovic’s four from seven.

Bogdanovic led three Hawks reserves in double figures with 17 points.

On responding after starting the season with two straight defeats, he said: “Nobody likes to lose. This team is so competitive.

“Most of the guys on this team can take the ball and go and just score 30 points off skill, talent.

“But we know that we need to sacrifice and help others and put them in a better position and look for the better option.”

Onyeka Okongwu added 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while Saddiq Bey scored 13 points with nine rebounds.

All five Atlanta starters scored at least 12 points, including Clint Capela with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Dejounte Murray and De’Andre Hunter each scored 15 points, and Jalen Johnson went for 14 points and seven rebounds.

Young dished a game-high 11 assists, Bogdanovic had six assists and Murray had five assists. Atlanta totalled 32 assists as a team to 22 for Milwaukee.

The Bucks’ Malik Beasley scored 18 points, Brook Lopez had 13 points and Bobby Portis scored 12 points off the bench for the Bucks. Antetokounmpo grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds.

Milwaukee shot 39 of 86 from the floor, including 16 of 44 from three-point range.

Meanwhile, Nikola Jokic scored 28 points with 14 rebounds and five assists as the Denver Nuggets beat their hosts Oklahoma City Thunder 128-95 on Sunday.

The win was the third consecutive for the reigning champions to start the season and Denver’s fourth consecutive win in Oklahoma City.

Also on Sunday, Malik Monk saved 11 of his 22 points for overtime while Kevin Huerter drilled a key trey with 32 seconds to go as the Sacramento Kings outlasted the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 132-127. REUTERS