2021 NBA Finals: Top things to know

The Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks will square off in the 2021 National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals after both teams triumphed in the Western and Eastern Conference finals, respectively.

The Suns have an opportunity to claim their first championship in franchise history, while the Bucks — who are returning to the Finals for the first time since 1974 — can add their second.

Here are the top things you need to know about the 2021 NBA Finals, including the series schedule, key players to watch, and more.

The Suns & Bucks’ path to the NBA Finals

The Suns entered the playoffs with the second-best record (51-21) in the entire NBA, and were rewarded with a first-round matchup with the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers for their troubles.

Yet the Suns clinched the series in six games, advancing to the Western Conference semifinals where they faced the Denver Nuggets and league MVP Nikola Jokic. Undeterred, the Suns swept the Nuggets in four games, and then took care of the Los Angeles Clippers in six games in the Western Conference finals.

The Suns are set to play in their first Finals since 1993, when Charles Barkley led Phoenix against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Despite Barkley’s best efforts, the Bulls prevailed in six games to win their third consecutive championship.

The Bucks finished the regular season with a 46-26 record, good for the third seed in the Eastern Conference as they returned to the postseason for the fifth consecutive year.

They made easy work of the Miami Heat (who eliminated Milwaukee in the 2020 playoffs) in four games, before overcoming the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference semifinals and finals, respectively. Milwaukee returns to its first Finals since 1974, when they lost to the Boston Celtics in seven games. Three years earlier, in 1971, the Bucks won their first and only title to date.

Key players to watch

Two-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo has missed the Bucks’ last two games after hyperextending his knee in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals, and there are question marks surrounding his availability for the entirety of the Finals. Following the Bucks’ Game 6 series-clinching win over the Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee coach Mike Budenholzer updated reporters as to Antetokounmpo’s health (per CBS Sports):

“You have to listen to the player and then you have to listen to the sports performance group, and at some point Jon Horst and myself are part of the conversations, but it's just a day-to-day thing. We'll update it when appropriate.”

In his absence, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton - who have both been selected to represent Team USA at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games - have stepped up their play considerably, and alongside centre Brook Lopez, still present a formidable threat to the Suns on both ends of the floor. However, the potential loss of Antetokounmpo — the Bucks’ season leader in points and rebounds per game — for all or some of the Finals will no doubt be of concern for Milwaukee.

Two-time Olympic gold medallist Chris Paul will be tasked with pulling the strings of the Suns’ offence in what will be Paul’s first finals of his 16-year NBA career. He will be supported by two-time All-Star and Suns top scorer Devin Booker (25.6ppg) and 2018 no.1 overall pick Deandre Ayton. Booker is the third player in the NBA Finals who will represent Team USA at the Olympic Games in Japan.

Read more about Paul's mentorship of Booker and what it could mean for Team USA at the Olympics here.

NBA Finals schedule

As the team with the better regular season record, the Suns will host the first two games of the series, with Games 3 and 4 held in Milwaukee. 

If necessary, Game 5 of the best-of-seven series will be played in Phoenix, with Game 6 scheduled for Milwaukee, if necessary.

The Suns would host a possible seventh and final game of the series by virtue of their superior regular season record.

Suns vs Bucks: the stats

The two teams met twice in the regular season, with Phoenix winning each time — though both contests were close affairs (a 125-124 victory on 10 February, and a 128-127 overtime win on 19 April).

Both the Suns and Bucks fall in the top 10 in defensive rating and points scored per game based on regular season statistics and have similar stats in assists per game (26.9 for the Suns versus 25.5 for the Bucks) and three-point percentage (38.9 for the Bucks compared to 37.8 for the Suns). However, the Bucks are a far better rebounding team (48.1 per contest) than the Suns (42.9). 

Often times such regular season numbers go out the window during the Finals, but it will be interesting to see how both teams match up during the series.