The Milwaukee Bucks misplaced their fourth straight sport Sunday evening. This slide may cost them dearly on the subject of playoff seeding.
Milwaukee dropped to 40-34 after Friday’s 145-124 loss to the Atlanta Hawks, which put them firmly in sixth place within the Jap Convention. The staff continues to be 4 video games forward of the Hawks with eight video games to play, most likely an insurmountable lead, however Atlanta would have the tiebreaker after profitable the season collection over Milwaukee, 3-2.
Extra troubling is their slide into sixth. The Bucks are on monitor to face the third-place New York Knicks within the first spherical. Throughout the common season, the Knicks went 3-0 in opposition to the Bucks, profitable 22 after which 34 factors of their first two conferences. Friday, regardless of taking part in with out All-Star Jalen Brunson and again guards Deuce McBride and Cameron Payne, the Knicks led for all however 4 minutes of a 116-107 win.
Milwaukee matches up poorly with the Knicks and their proficient wing gamers. It hasn’t overwhelmed any of the highest three groups within the Jap Convention this season, going 0-3 in opposition to the Boston Celtics and 0-4 in opposition to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The staff’s greatest hope is climbing to fourth or fifth place and a matchup with the Indiana Pacers or Detroit Pistons.
That is what makes the final two video games of the season essential for Milwaukee. It faces the Pistons in a home-and-home collection to shut out the season. The Bucks beat the Pistons twice within the first 20 video games of 2024-25, however Detroit has been a much better team since late December.
The silver lining for Milwaukee? They’ve a much easier schedule than Detroit down the stretch, with one sport in opposition to the Philadelphia 76ers and two in opposition to the New Orleans Pelicans.
With Damian Lillard, who’s out indefinitely, the Bucks is perhaps doomed within the playoffs anyway. However to provide themselves an opportunity, even with Lillard, the Bucks must climb into fifth place. In any other case, a fourth straight first-round exit could possibly be inevitable.
