Bucks vs. Suns NBA Finals Game 4 Open Thread

Can the Bucks tie the series?

Milwaukee Bucks vs. Phoenix Suns – 9:00pm ET (ABC) – Suns lead 2-1

Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Social media and talk radio circles have been circulating a lot of “Worst NBA Finals ever?” discussions after the first three games of this series. I suppose it’s because each game has been decided by double digits, with no real significant crunch-time minutes and the associated drama that comes with a contest coming down to the wire. But neither team looks overmatched by the other, and with the Bucks dubbed favorites again tonight at home, there’s a better-than-even chance we’ll be looking at a tie series and a best-of-three for the title. Of course, Phoenix will have something to say about that idea tonight, but I would count on these next few games getting a lot closer.

If the Bucks are to knot the series, it’s going to be on the back of their superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, who joined Shaquille O’Neal as the only NBA players to record consecutive 40-point, 10-rebound Finals games. Giannis shot 13-of-13 at the rim in Game 3, and is getting to the foul line a ton (15.7 attempts per game this series), as Phoenix looks to prevent those automatic points at the bucket. If the Suns’ “Giannis Wall” continues to show foundational cracks, the current +200 Giannis MVP odds will prove far too low.

However, Devin Booker likely won’t shoot 3-of-14 from the field again as he did in Game 3, and the Suns were firing on all cylinders during the two games back in Phoenix. We could just as easily see a return to form and look back at Game 3 as a small blip on the way to Chris Paul’s long-awaited first title. We’ll find out tonight. Follow along with the action in the comments.