The Celtics can blame Kevin Garnett for waking up Bucks’ center Thon Maker

Milwaukee Bucks center Thon Maker’s defensive presence has been a catalyst behind his team’s comeback against the Boston Celtics in the first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs. He credited one man for getting him out of his funk: former Celtics star Kevin Garnett.

Maker has thrived in his last two games, both Milwaukee victories, thanks to an aggressive approach to patrolling the paint. He’s recorded 10 blocks in that span to enforce a new “no easy buckets” policy, and he’s attributed that turnaround to an inspirational video posted on Garnett’s Instagram feed last week and his ongoing relationship with the future Hall of Famer.

”He posted it on his Instagram and somebody showed it to me,” Maker told ESPN reporter Nick Friedell after Tuesday’s shootaround. “And then I watched it and I sent it back to him and told him how motivational it was and said I liked it. So then we started talking.”

The video was part of Garnett’s Area 21 series on TNT. In it, he details the defensive challenges of guarding stars like Tim Duncan, Chris Webber, Charles Barkley, and Dirk Nowitzki over his 21-year career. He also imbues the message that defined his playing style on the court and guided him to become one of the league’s fiercest defenders: “you’ve got to be a little crazy to play this game.”

Maker was an afterthought as the Bucks fell in an 0-2 hole in Boston. He played just one total minute between those games, missing a pair of shots and ultimately remaining anonymous as starter John Henson manned the middle for Milwaukee. It wasn’t a new or special development for the young center; he’d played nine minutes or fewer in 13 of the team’s last 21 games, including eight games where he didn’t play at all.

But Henson’s sore back kept him out of Game 3, and that gave the second-year big man the chance to prove his value from the bench. Maker’s long arms and high energy have made him the perfect help defender in the paint. His interior defense, while exploitable in one-on-one matchups with stronger forwards and centers like Aron Baynes and Al Horford (shooting a combined 60 prcent the past two games), has been innately helpful against the Celtics’ slashing attack. He’s been able to block everyone from center and former teammate Greg Monroe (three times) to shooting guard Jaylen Brown.

Maker’s value comes from his speed, length, and explosion. The plodding Monroe hasn’t been able to drive past him or elevate over him, and the young Bucks player’s defense has been a major factor in his 4-for-13 performance the last two games. For every block he’s earned, there’s been at least as many shots altered in the paint. True to Garnett form, there have been some screaming, flexing, crowd-pumping celebrations after the biggest swats.

Just as importantly, Maker’s presence as the team’s catch-all safety net has allowed Milwaukee’s perimeter defenders to take more risks, knowing a shot-eraser lurks behind them. That manifested in 16 Celtics’ turnovers in a Game 3 rout. While Boston was better prepared in Game 4, Maker was still able to pace an important effort from the Bucks’ second unit and even the series at two games apiece.

Henson will miss Tuesday’s Game 5 with lingering back problems, but Maker’s inspired play means Milwaukee won’t miss him much. The second-year player has revived his value after a roller-coaster second season.

Now he doesn’t just look like the rookie who impressed as a starter in last year’s playoffs. He looks a little bit like a young Garnett.