Pippen Ain't Easy
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Chicago Bulls vs. Milwaukee Bucks Takeaways: Giannis Shows Out, Butler Disappears

By Daniel Coughlin

Dec 16, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Denzel Valentine (45) drives on Milwaukee Bucks guard Tony Snell (21) during the first half at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 16, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Denzel Valentine (45) drives on Milwaukee Bucks guard Tony Snell (21) during the first half at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 16, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) drives the ball defended by Chicago Bulls forward Cristiano Felicio (6) during the second half at the United Center. Milwaukee won 95-69. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 16, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) drives the ball defended by Chicago Bulls forward Cristiano Felicio (6) during the second half at the United Center. Milwaukee won 95-69. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports /

Giannis and Jabari

A couple things right off. We’re not a Bucks blog and I don’t have enough room on a single page. For what? Antetokounmpo and Parker were fired up for both of these games. It’s night and day watching a couple of young, athletic players who want to be the better team, that want to win.

I am in no way a Chicago White Sox fan, but I can’t help but think of Ken “Hawk” Harrelson and his mantra about The Will to Win.

Dwyane Wade is one of the best to ever do it. Butler has been a legitimate top 15 player in the league for most of the season. They got housed by the young guns of the Bucks.

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Going back to the previous slide, the first quarter, those two players combined to shoot 6-for-6. Parker only hit two shots in the quarter, but he was literally bullying Butler in this game. It was awkward to watch. We’ve talked a lot about how this Chicago team is older, slower, and perhaps a bad fit. However, the outstanding play of Butler was helping to mask that. How odd it was to watch the excellent wing get backed down and mowed through for easy layups by a player in just his third NBA season, just the first in which he’s looked anything like the player everyone expected coming out of the draft.

Anteokounmpo is on another level. I need to tell you this: It is okay to enjoy players on another team. We talked about this in our staff Slack chat, today. We didn’t want the Bulls to lose, but it is irresistible to watch the Greek Freak and Parker connecting on passes and in transition, skying for highlight slams and sincere belief.

It’s enough to make me jealous. They have plenty of problems and holes in their team, mostly just the absence of Khris Middleton, so it isn’t a perfect team, but I’m jealous of how it must feel to be Milwaukee fan. Imagine knowing you had your star players, Middleton and Antetokounmpo, locked up long-term and you’re about to extend Parker, too. That grouping has a much, much brighter future than any grouping of three players you can come up with in Chicago.

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