Milwaukee Bucks are the new favorites to win the NBA title
The Milwaukee Bucks have been the toast of the Eastern Conference over the past couple of seasons. In 2018-19, they finished with a 60-22 record. Along with that, they were the fourth-best offensive team in the league and the top defensive team in the league. Despite their regular-season success, the Bucks came up short in the conference finals.
The following season, the Milwaukee Bucks posted a 56-17 record. They finished eighth in offensive efficiency and they were the NBA’s top defensive team once again. But just like the year before, the Bucks came up a bit short in the postseason. They went on to lose to the fifth-seeded Miami Heat in five games in the conference semifinals.
This season the Bucks had the third-best record in the eastern conference at 46-26. And they remained a top-10 team at both ends of the floor. The big question was how would they fare in the postseason. Given their shortcomings in the postseason over the two seasons, that question was valid, to say the least.
On the brink of elimination
The Bucks made quick of the Miami Heat, sweeping them in four games. However, the second round of the playoffs put them against the second-seeded Brooklyn Nets. With the trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden, the Nets were the favorites to win the title this year.
In that series, the Bucks overcame an 0-2 deficit, but were the brink of elimination when the Nets won Game 5. However, the Bucks won the next two games to advance to the conference finals for the second time in three seasons.
The Bucks will face a Hawks team that is making its first conference finals appearance since 2015. On paper, the Bucks should emerge victorious in this matchup.
Home court advantage
The Bucks have not lost a home game yet in the playoffs and will also have the home-court advantage against the Atlanta Hawks.
NBA lines website Betway recently did a study on all the 71 NBA finals and came up with some interesting results.
Of the 71 seasons in NBA history, the team with home advantage in the Finals has won the championship in 50 of them. That’s 70 percent.
Moreover, the 1st and 7th games have resulted in a home win in 75% and 79% of the cases. In other words, home-court advantage counts.
However, what these playoffs have proven thus far is that anything can happen. For example, the Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated in the first round. And the top two teams in the East are now gone as well.
Furthermore, given the Bucks’ postseason failures over the past two seasons, there is some reason for concern. With that being said, it will be interesting to see if the Bucks can make it to the Finals for the first time since the 1973-74 campaign.