On Thursday, the Milwaukee Bucks lost their second preseason game as the Los Angeles Lakers pulled off a 107-102 comeback victory by outscoring the Bucks 33-20 in the final frame. While the Lakers’ reserves dominated the Bucks’ reserves in the fourth, Bucks coach Doc Rivers was pleased with their performance throughout the game.

“There aren’t many games where the starters go against the starters and the guys play hard,” Rivers said. “I thought the game was played with some intensity. That was nice to see. I think both coaches are probably very happy with it.”

Even though it was just a preseason game, there was plenty of action and intensity on the floor. So let’s look at the game’s three biggest takeaways.

After missing the Bucks’ first preseason game, two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo showed no restraint in his first game appearance at Fiserv Forum since collapsing against the Boston Celtics in April, ending his 2023-24 season.

Antetokounmpo scored the first four points of the game, but showed his return to action early in the second quarter with a massive chase-down block on Lakers superstar LeBron James.

GIANNIS CHASEDOWN REJECTION 😲

LAL-MIL on NBA TV | #NBAPreseason pic.twitter.com/0Dw04bgEmF

– NBA (@NBA) October 11, 2024

To blast James’ shot, Antetokounmpo gave up his body and fell to the ground after the block, a sight that could leave Bucks fans breathless. But Rivers pushed aside any thought of telling Antetokounmpo to take it easy because it was just an exhibition game.

“You are who you are,” Rivers said of Antetokounmpo. “And that’s what makes him great. That’s what makes all these players so great: they just play. These guys don’t think about it because that’s how they play.”

A few minutes later, after a steal from point guard Damian Lillard, Antetokounmpo threw down a hellacious one-handed slam in transition and then presented the crowd with one of his signature mean cups to celebrate the occasion.

Steal. Strike. Mean mug. pic.twitter.com/YRWqgJrRc0

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) October 11, 2024

Antetokounmpo looked like the player who has dominated the NBA for much of the past decade, finishing in the top five of NBA MVP voting over the past six seasons.

As he did Sunday in Detroit, Bobby Portis, the NBA’s longtime Sixth Man of the Year candidate, entered the game and immediately began knocking down shots. For the second straight preseason game, Portis made his first four 3-point attempts.

BOBBY IS ON FIRE 🔥@gruber_law | #FearTheDeer pic.twitter.com/R0sSDoeqFW

— Bally Sports Wisconsin (@BallySportWI) October 11, 2024

And while he missed his fifth goal in Detroit, he knocked down his fifth 3-point attempt against the Lakers. Portis scored 20 points on just eight shots in the first nine minutes he was on the court.

In two games, Portis has only missed one shot from distance and is shooting an absurd 90 percent from behind the 3-point line. Like the other starters, Portis did not play in the second half, but still scored 23 points and three rebounds in 14 minutes in the first half.

In the Bucks’ first two preseason games, Portis played just over 28 minutes and scored 39 points. He shot the ball with confidence and played with the swagger that made him a dangerous scorer for years when he came off the bench.

“I love the way we play Bobby,” Rivers said. “He knows he’s getting in. Vinnie Johnson or whoever else you want to name, the great guys who come off the bench and say, ‘We’re going to you.’ Use it responsibly. He also made a few good passes. But we want him to be aggressive.”

As Rivers mentioned, Portis was so hot behind the 3-point line and his shot was so quick that he used a pump fake in transition to fool the Lakers’ defenders and use a clever play to create a dunk for Antetokounmpo to open the second quarter.

When asked what he thought led to his strong early start to the preseason, Portis passionately explained his offseason.

“I recognize my hard work over the summer,” Portis said. “A lot of naysayers talk crazy about my name. Every time I’m on social media, every time I do something, someone says something about me. For me, I appreciate that I work hard every year and get better and better.

“One thing I’ve done throughout my career is get better every year, no matter what no one says. So my biggest thing this summer was going to the gym and just working. I worked like a madman every day of my life this summer, bro. I just want my work to be visible on the pitch. So hopefully it translates easily into preseason. But I just play with confidence, go out there and be who I am. I put a lot of work into my craft.”

AJ Johnson impresses after accelerated debut

With five minutes and 31 seconds left in the first quarter, Damian Lillard threw a pass out of bounds as he drove to the basket. While coaches never want to see turnovers, especially in preseason, they don’t want to see what causes the turnover.

As Lillard drove to the basket, his feet twisted and it appeared he sprained his ankle, causing him to wince as he jogged across the floor trying to pass through. Rivers wasted no time, taking him out of the game on the next dead ball and bringing in rookie point guard AJ Johnson.

In the end, Lillard was fine and played later in the game, but Johnson entered the game earlier than expected, which could have put him in a tough spot.

On Sunday against the Pistons, Johnson went 1 of 8 for two points and had three turnovers with just two assists. The 19-year-old never seemed to find his rhythm and felt uncomfortable adjusting to the NBA for the first time.

“The game for AJ the other night was going a million miles an hour, you could see that,” Rivers said Tuesday. “Nine times out of 10 I would have turned him off, but I had no interest in turning him off. I just wanted to let him stay out there just to stay out there. I thought it would be a good thing for him.”

When asked about Johnson before Thursday’s game, Rivers joked that Johnson would still be a teenager and that the game might still move quickly for him. Rivers emphasized that Johnson has received a lot of instruction in recent days and that there is great confidence in him throughout the organization. That extra instruction seemed to shine through when the young point guard came into the game for Lillard and made an immediate impact.

While Johnson struggled to find the right pace against the Pistons, against the Lakers he used his electric speed perfectly to give his team an advantage and then maintained it by slowing down and hitting the ball on one of his first possessions played the right pass to Portis.

In the second half, Johnson used that speed to get past his defender and then used his excellent body control at the rim to get around Anthony Davis, one of the league’s best shot blockers.

“The biggest thing with him, man, is just telling him to slow down,” Portis said of Johnson after the game. “Of course when you first come into the league you play pretty fast and you don’t realize that the game can just be slow.

“It takes a few minutes to find your rhythm, find your tempo and know how you want to play it at your pace. Everyone has their own speed on the pitch, right? I think his biggest task is finding the speed he needs to play at to be effective and be a professional.”

With Lillard calling the shots and Delon Wright filling in the remaining minutes as the backup point guard, Johnson’s playing time will likely be limited this season, but that doesn’t mean he’ll never get his chances. Injuries happen, but so do absences, so Johnson must take advantage of the opportunities presented to him this season to make the most of not only his limited time on the floor, but also the instruction he receives in practice , to make the most of his rookie season.

(Giannis Antetokounmpo Photo: Morry Gash/Associated Press)