Bucks’ Lineup Change Sets Up Career Night For Gary Trent Jr.

After his starters were outplayed by the Pacers in the first two games of their first-round series, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers told reporters he was mulling a lineup change. He made good on that assertion on Friday by removing Taurean Prince from his starting five and replacing him with Gary Trent Jr.

The lineup tweak helped fuel a big night for the Bucks and Trent, who matched teammate Giannis Antetokounmpo with a game-high 37 points on 11-of-16 shooting, including 9-of-12 three-pointers. Trent also served as the primary defender against Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton.

After Milwaukee finished off a 117-101 victory to trim Indiana’s series lead to 2-1, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers explained why he believed starting Trent made sense.

“We wanted somebody aggressive to attack Haliburton back,” Rivers said, per Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “I thought he did that. I thought that was great for us. And I like his defense on the ball. So there were two reasons. The offensive part, because he’s really aggressive. And the defensive part, because of his hands and just how aggressive he is there, he picked the ball up. I thought it was the first time in the series that we applied pressure to the ball and I thought that made a big difference.”

Trent’s 37 points weren’t a career high — he topped that number three times during his time as a Raptor, including when he scored 44 against Cleveland in April 2021. But it probably qualifies as the biggest game of his career, given the stakes. His 37 points represented his highest career total in a playoff game, while his nine three-pointers matched both a personal career high and a Bucks postseason record (tying Ray Allen).

For his part, Trent said he benefited from all the defensive attention on his star teammates, Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, which helped create open looks for him and made it easy to aggressively seek out his own shot.

“Obviously, we understand how they’re trying to defend us and who they are trying to guard and take Giannis out and take Dame out,” Trent said. “So there is certain opportunities that may present itself and just knock the shot down.”

Trent, who signed with Milwaukee as a free agent last summer, was coming off a three-year, $52MM deal with Toronto and had a relatively solid year in 2023/24, so it was a bit of a surprise when he had to settle for a one-year, minimum-salary contract. The hope was that he’d get to play a major role for a contending team, rebuilding his value ahead of a return to free agency in 2025.

Trent got off to a slow start last fall, but finished the regular season with a 41.6% mark on 5.9 three-point attempts per game and is now showing that he can be a valuable contributor in the playoffs. Having helped recruit Trent to the Bucks last summer, Lillard said he wasn’t surprised by his teammate’s performance on Friday.

“One thing I told the team when they were trying to get Gary here and I was trying to make that connection and bring him here was I told them this is one of the most confident players that I’ve played with,” Lillard said, according to Nehm. “Unshakeable guy. His confidence is steady. His work ethic is steady. Very stubborn. And he’s a guy that’s not going to fold up when moments come. And he’ll be there.”

Given Friday’s outcome, the Bucks will likely continue to roll with Trent as a starter in Game 4 on Sunday, while Prince – who played just three minutes in Game 3 – remains on the bench. Trent is eager to make the most of his increased role.

“It’s almost like a fulfilling feeling,” he said on Friday, per Jamal Collier of ESPN. “I put in a lot of work, a lot of time, a lot of hours. I sacrifice a lot of things going into this. But again, the cream always rises to the top and continue to keep working and it should showcase itself when the opportunity presents itself.”