After decades of simply fighting for a final playoff spot, the Milwaukee Bucks once again find themselves at or near the top of the Eastern Conference standings with ten games remaining in the regular season.
Mike Budenholzer took over as the Bucks head coach in 2018 and immediately catapulted the Bucks to the top of the East (as well as helped Giannis Antetokounmpo turn into a perennial MVP candidate). Since then, Milwaukee has finished in first three times and third twice—one being the year they won the NBA Finals.
At 46-26, they find themselves in second place in the East—the last time they accomplished that was the 2000-01 season. They’re two games ahead of the New York Knicks (44-28), 2.5 ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers (44-29), and four games ahead of the Orlando Magic (42-30).
- Boston Celtics (clinched playoff spot): 57-15
- Milwaukee Bucks: 46-26, 11 GB
- New York Knicks: 44-28, 13 GB
- Cleveland Cavaliers, 44-29, 13.5 GB
- Orlando Magic: 42-30, 15 GB
- Indiana Pacers: 41-33, 17 GB
- Miami Heat: 39-33, 18 GB
- Philadelphia 76ers: 39-34, 18.5 GB
- Chicago Bulls: 35-38, 22.5 GB
- Atlanta Hawks: 33-39, 24 GB
- Brooklyn Nets: 28-45, 29.5 GB
- All other teams eliminated
If Milwaukee holds onto the second seed, they will play the winner of the first play-in game between the seventh and eighth-placed teams in the East. As of now, that game will feature the Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers.
That’s a tough draw for the Bucks.
Miami beat them in the first round of the playoffs last year. They are a tough team for the Bucks to play considering all of the player and ball movement they implement on the perimeter. The Bucks love to use their hands on defense and Miami’s barrage of dribble handoffs and disciplined player movement make that difficult.
The Philadelphia 76ers are a unique case. They had the second-best net rating in the NBA before Joel Embiid got hurt, and have since added Buddy Hield, Kyle Lowry and Cameron Payne to their roster. Embiid is expected back before the end of the regular season and would present a very challenging first round matchup.
Milwaukee would probably rather see the Indiana Pacers than either the Heat or the 76ers in the first round. Despite the Pacers giving Milwaukee trouble this season, they present a better first-round opponent from a matchup standpoint—even though they are dangerous in their own right.
There’s still a lot of movement that could happen in the final ten games of the regular season. Not only could the standings change for the play-in tournament, but Milwaukee still has work to do to secure their seeding. They also have to concentrate on continuing to learn to play together.
Here’s the Bucks remaining schedule:
- 3/28: at New Orleans Pelicans (44-28)
- 3/30: at Atlanta Hawks (33-39)
- 4/2: at Washington Wizards (14-59)
- 4/3: vs Memphis Grizzlies (24-49)
- 4/5: vs Toronto Raptors (23-50)
- 4/7: vs New York Knicks (44-28)
- 4/9: vs Boston Celtics (57-15)
- 4/10: vs Orlando Magic (42-30)
- 4/12: at Oklahoma City Thunder (50-22)
- 4/14: at Orlando Magic (42-30)