Eric Nehm covers the Bucks and Brewers for ESPN Milwaukee.

MILWAUKEE -- For six consecutive possessions late in the first half Saturday, the Milwaukee Bucks ran the exact same play. Every player on the floor occupied the exact same position to start the play and the first pass went to the same player in the same spot. Despite the Bucks’ simplistic setup, their opponent, the Indiana Pacers, could do nothing to stop it. Milwaukee scored 10 points on those six possessions.

“They couldn’t stop it,” Bucks rookie Thon Maker said with a smile on his face when asked about the repetitive use of the play. “They gotta stop it!”

Maker explained that the Bucks do not have a specific name for the play, but, in most NBA circles, it is known as “Elbow Get”.

It was popularized (and possibly created) by Mike D’Antoni with his Seven Seconds or Less Phoenix Suns to take advantage of the Suns’ roster of tall and athletic playmakers. The ultimate goal of the play is leveraging the above-average playmaking of a tall player to put a number of defenders in compromising positions because of the quick-hitting nature of the play and spacing that can be created by running a pick-and-roll with the two biggest offensive players on the floor. (“Elbow Get” video here.)

In his thorough breakdown of “Elbow Get”, ESPN analyst and former Suns staffer Amin Elhassan explains, “When performed in concert, with rapidity, the play is difficult to stop because there are so many moving parts, making it difficult for the opponent to play help defense (the spacing is key here, as well).”

For the Bucks, setting up the play was simple. Malcolm Brogdon and Michael Beasley occupy space on the right side of the floor, with Brogdon in the corner and Beasley on the wing. Matthew Dellavedova brings the ball up the left side of the floor. Giannis Antetokounmpo occupies the left elbow and Maker takes the right. While the floor spacers are important to the success of the play, it’s really all about the two players at the elbows. And, if you listen to Maker, it’s really about Antetokounmpo.

“You put your best player on that elbow to get the catch and then see how teams play that first,” Maker said. “Then, you set the screen. And then after that, you read that. It’s really dangerous because you can’t really trap from the elbow. It’s the best spot to be in the NBA.”

The Bucks have been running “Elbow Get” for Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker for the past two years. By starting each player closer to the basket and taking away some of the defense’s options, playmaking becomes much simpler as there are fewer reads to make. As a rim-running big, Miles Plumlee was often the screener in these situations. With Plumlee in Charlotte, Maker has been asked to fill the role.

“I’m playing the big (role) now, so I have to set the screen [for the pick and roll],” Maker said. “When you go in there, you have to do your job. So, if I do my job, it makes it easier for the ballhandler. I have to set a good screen.”

It was at this moment that Maker swiveled in his chair and pointed to a laminated 8x11-inch sheet of paper in his locker. The laminated sign showed Maker’s three personalized focuses the coaching staff had given him for the game. With a smile on his face and a laugh, Maker put his finger on “2. Set Screens” and reiterated the importance of setting screens.

“Set. Screens. I have to make sure I hit the guy and usually the screener gets open if you set a really good screen,” Maker said. “So, I’m just trying to set a good screen when I come in.

And that is exactly what Maker did the first time they ran the play. Maker made square contact with Pacers forward Paul George, which allowed Antetokounmpo to get to the rim and draw a foul on Myles Turner.

On the next possession, Antetokounmpo was fouled by George before Maker was even able to set a screen and a timeout was called. During that timeout, the Bucks All-Star got in Maker’s ear and gave him a little advice.

“After the first two times we ran it, there was a timeout or something like that,” Maker said. “We came to the bench and [Giannis and I] started talking about it -- talking about the different options we can do.”

“Pop and shoot the ball,” Antetokounmpo said, of what he told Maker in that timeout. “We encourage him. Pop. Shoot the ball.”

And Maker did that the next time they ran the play, but wasn’t rewarded. Instead, it was Malcolm Brogdon, who ended up drawing a shooting foul.

Despite Antetokounmpo’s instruction in the timeout, Maker read the defense on the fourth possession, and since he’s given the option to roll or pop, he rolled. It worked as he was able to get a five-foot hook shot, but he was unable to finish it.

Maker’s miss on the roll on the fourth possession made the result on the fifth possession (:25 on video below) that much sweeter for Antetokounmpo and the Bucks bench.

The best plays from @ThonMaker14 as he makes an impact in the WIN over the Pacers!!#OwnTheFuture pic.twitter.com/VEIVkNDqmu

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) February 12, 2017

Maker set a solid screen on Glenn Robinson III before popping to the left wing behind Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo attacked the middle with two dribbles and tossed a simple chest pass back to Maker, who cashed in the open look at a three.

“Thon has the ability to pop,” Antetokounmpo said. “That's the difference with Thon because if he pops, he's going to be wide open. The defenders go on to my drive, so when I come off the screen, his guy is going to be right in front of me on my drive, so he's going to be wide open on the pop.”

That ability makes the Bucks' iteration of "Elbow Get" unique throughout the league, but, more importantly, it is also what can make Maker such a special player for the Bucks. Very few centers can shoot the ball accurately from deep. If Maker can withstand the beating from thicker players defensively, his ability to stretch the floor as a center should open up a number of opportunities for the Bucks offense, especially for Antetokounmpo.

“With Thon, I always have the outlet,” Antetokounmpo said. “Thon is always the outlet because he's always popping and his man is going to be back in the lane. We can run the same play and Thon can get 20 shots in a row. We could run the same play.”

While Maker may not attack the rim with the same skill and ferocity as Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker or Khris Middleton, one single play in Indiana showed why his unique shooting ability as a seven-footer is just as valuable.