I think it would be very revealing for us to revisit (or discover an article that visits) the question of "how the hell did Toronto blow away the Bucks in 6 last year, especially after losing the first 2?"
Looking at
the series stats, three things are clear:
1. Lowry shot out of his mind, with a .709 TS% / .657 eFG%, averaging 19.2 pts/gm.
2. Even so, Kawhi basically bossed the entire series, was the leading scorer in 5 out of the 6 games (30 pts / gm!), played 42 minutes / game, and lit up the stat sheet to the point where Giannis only stands out for defensive rebounding.
3. We have no idea, just from the stats, the extent to which Kawhi's presence enabled them to contain Giannis. And that deserves more careful study, because it suggests how they might fare if they come back, beat us, and get a rematch vs MIL.
Basically, to what extent was their defensive excellence in that series down to
scheme, rather than just having Kawhi as its own form of cheat code? Kawhi isn't a physical freak in quite the same way as Giannis or (say) Anthony Davis, he's got still-within-the-bounds-of-normal-NBA size, speed, strength, etc. His extraordinary value comes from defensive intensity, offensive awareness and decision-making, clutch shooting / playmaking, conditioning, and other things that are more mental and training-related than genetic. Theoretically, if a lot of the Raptors' success in that series last year came from scheme, then trying to repeat it with a slightly older/better Siakam and great supporting cast stands more of a chance than if they were relying on hero ball and an offensive cheat code that's now departed.