Milwaukee Bucks superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who suffered a hyperextended left knee injury during the East finals, surprisingly resembled his old, dominant self in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
But the welcoming sight and performance wasn't enough to help the Bucks steal a game on the road. The Phoenix Suns' stars just shined brighter.
In his NBA Finals debut, Suns veteran guard Chris Paul scored 32 points on 12-of-19 shooting with nine assists, lifting Phoenix to a convincing 118-105 win over Milwaukee on Tuesday night at Phoenix Suns Arena.
"I don't care what moves Coach Budenholzer makes. I don't care how many MVP's Giannis has. I don't care if he's actually playing, despite having a bum knee. I think the odds are against the Bucks," JR said during Tuesday's edition of the JR SportBrief show. "Can the Bucks win? Yes, yes they can, okay. The Bucks can win. Am I favoring them to win? Hell no, I'm not.
"The Bucks are going to have to have just a major performance, a game-changing performance, throughout this series from Khris Middleton. That's it. Khris Middleton has to be consistent. He's the one who has to step his game up. Giannis can look nice with his dunks and his blocks -- Giannis is not the closer... So look, I've got the Suns winning this championship."
Antetokounmpo, whose Game 1 status went from doubtful to questionable to active in less than 24 hours, scored 20 points with 17 rebounds and four assists in 34 minutes of action. Following the loss, the two-time MVP winner told reporters that he felt his left knee was stable and pain-free.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, Paul joined Michael Jordan (1991) as the only players in NBA history to score 30 points with nine assists in a Finals debut. Paul also became just the third player at age 36 or older to score 30-plus points in a Finals game.
Game 2 of the best-of-seven series will take place Thursday night in Phoenix, with tipoff scheduled for 9 p.m. ET. Milwaukee currently has a 22-percent chance of winning its first title since 1971, per FiveThirtyEight's projections.
JR's complete thoughts on the NBA Finals can be accessed in the audio player above.
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