Who are the Biggest X-Factors Ahead of the 2023 Bucks-Heat Series?
The final 2023 first-round series in the Eastern Conference gets underway on Sunday, April 16 when the Milwaukee Bucks host the Miami Heat. The story of this series is the star power that both teams have, especially in the starting lineup. With superstars on both teams in Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jimmy Butler, the difference between winning this series and losing it could be determined by which team’s X-factor shows up the brightest.
Let’s have a deeper look into which players will be X-factors for their respective teams.
Milwaukee Bucks
Biggest X-Factor: Khris Middleton, F
While in past years Khris Middleton has been a star on the Bucks, injuries issues this season have seen him play a far less significant role. Middleton missed 49 games in the 2022-23 NBA season due to off-season wrist surgery and continued knee problems after spraining his MCL in the playoffs last year. The three-time All-Star re-aggravated his knee injury in the final week of the season but looks set to still play a part in this first-round series.
Middleton is likely to be ready for Game 1, but the extent to which he can play will be under close eye. There is a possibility he will face a minute restriction in the early games against the Heat. This makes him my X-factor for the Bucks. If he returns anywhere near the level of play we have seen him at in the past, then he can single-handedly change the game for Milwaukee.
Alongside two All-Stars in Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday, Middleton is more than capable of being that third star that the Bucks can utilize. To another extent he also becomes another player opposing teams, in this case, the Heat, will have to worry about.
It was clear Middleton was not 100 percent during the 33 games he played this season. He had a career-low field goal percentage at 43.6 percent and the second-worst 3-point percentage in his 11-year career at 31.5 percent. However, this is the playoffs. Last time we saw a healthy Middleton in the postseason he was essential to helping the Bucks win their first NBA title in 50 years.
Middleton can stretch the floor and open up more space for the likes of Antetokounmpo to get down low. Despite the injury worries, he is still a top player when his game is clicking. Against a team that was top-10 in defensive efficiency, it may come down to which X-factor can step up in the brightest moments and Khris Middleton can do exactly that.
Miami Heat
Biggest X-Factor: Max Strus, G
Fourth-year guard Max Strus had a career year in 2023 playing in 80 games and working his way into the starting lineup for the Heat. This continued the trend from last postseason when he started in all 18 of the top-seeded Heat’s playoff games.
It was Strus who stepped up in the second play-in game against the Chicago Bulls. In the 102-91 win, he dropped a game-high 31 points while knocking down 7-of-12 3-point attempts. In the Heat’s small-ball lineup, Strus plays small forward which will see him face a variety of defenders due to Middleton’s possible minute restriction.
Against a great Bucks team, the pressure falls on the shoulders of Jimmy Butler. If Miami has any hope of pulling off the upset then players like Strus will have to step up into a bigger role. He showed that he can on a big stage last week, but he will have to have a big series to get past the Bucks and show that he can be an X-Factor and positively impact the game.
***
Check out the Vendetta Twitch!!
SUBSCRIBE to the Vendetta YouTube!!
