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State of the the NBA’s East: Bucks Looking Dominant
A look at the standings after one-third of the season and upcoming schedule
The NBA regular season is basically divided into thirds. 1) Opening night in late October until Christmas. 2) Christmas until the mid-February All-Star Break. 3) Post-All-Star to mid-April.
The Milwaukee Bucks are obliterating everyone, having just reeled off 18 wins in a row, and 21 of their last 22. Most see the Bucks as the heavy favorites to represent the East in June’s Finals. After 31 games, the Bucks are on a 71-win pace. They’ve built a five-game cushion, three in the loss column over Boston, and 4 fewer losses than Miami. As we head into the NBA’s Christmas Day extravaganza, the Bucks will face Philadelphia. MVP favorite Giannis Antetokuonmpo is taking twice as many threes (5.1 per game, making 34%) as he has in the past, and he showed serious swagger in knocking down a career-high 5 of 8 from deep in their recent statement win over the Lakers. This should terrify all title contenders. Milwaukee’s toughest stretch of the season won’t come until late February. Barring injury, expect them to stay on a 70-win pace. Tough match-ups in late February and early March will determine whether or not they have their eyes on 73 wins. The smarter approach would be to settle for high-60s and be 100% healthy for April, but fans will be clamoring if they stay at this level.
