Boston Celtics Vs. Milwaukee Bucks: Predictions, Starting Lineups (1/11/24)
Buckle up for this Thursday night game between two Eastern Conference titans: Milwaukee and Boston. Below, we cover our Boston Celtics vs. Milwaukee Bucks prediction, betting pick, and in-depth analysis. Tune in!
Boston Celtics Vs. Milwaukee Bucks Prediction
Could this be a preview of the 2024 Eastern Conference Finals? Very possibly. Don’t be shocked if this game is even more intense than advertised, with so much history between these two teams in just the past few years.
These squads have already faced off once this season, with the Celtics winning the game at home by merely three points. However, this game will be at Fiserv Forum, where the Bucks are 16-4 in the 2023-24 campaign. What can we expect?
Even though the Bucks are only 12-20 ATS with a rest day, while the C’s are 4-2 ATS on the second night of a back-to-back this season, Boston did just go into overtime in a hyper-competitive game against the best team in the Western Conference (Minnesota). That is worth consideration when doing your due diligence on this game.
As a matter of fact, Boston had four starters play 40 or more minutes on Wednesday night, which is a heavy workload, especially when the Celtics have to get on a plane immediately after to fly to Milwaukee. Al Horford was the only starter not to reach 40 minutes, but he still played 38 minutes, which is a lot for any 37-year-old (except for LeBron at that age.)
The number of minutes on Horford’s legs concerns us even more if Kristaps Porzingis can’t play in this game; he also missed the game against Minnesota last night, so his availability is a real question mark. Without Porzingis and with Horford playing on dead legs, this Celtics frontcourt stands little chance of stopping Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bobby Portis, and Brook Lopez.
This matchup is also favorable for Milwaukee because Boston relies so heavily on the three-point line to score. The Cs get the highest percentage of their points from three-pointers (40%) of any team in the NBA. Of course, they can knock them down, but Milwaukee holds opponents to just 33.7% shooting from behind the arc, which is the third-lowest percentage across the league.
Additionally, Boston allows the second-most wide-open (6+ feet) three-point attempts to opponents. Luckily for the Celtics (pun not intended), opponents are only knocking down 37.3% of those, which is the ninth-lowest percentage.
Milwaukee’s ability to spread the floor and deploy four legitimate three-point threats (Malik Beasley, Damian Lillard, Brook Lopez, and Khris Middleton) in the starting lineup should help it hold the Cs off at home. Back the Bucks Moneyline.
Boston Celtics Vs. Milwaukee Bucks Prediction: Bucks ML (-177)
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Boston Celtics Vs. Milwaukee Bucks Best Odds
Boston, the best team in the NBA, enters this matchup against fellow championship contender Milwaukee as a six-point road dog. The Celtics have Moneyline odds of +200 to pull out an unlikely win against Giannis and company, while Milwaukee is a -245 favorite to take care of business at Fiserv Forum, where it has won 16 of its first 20 games. The Over/Under is at a healthy total of 240 points, indicating a shootout between these two squads.
Boston Celtics Starting Lineup
PG: Derrick White
SG: Jrue Holiday
SF: Jaylen Brown
PF: Jayson Tatum
C: Al Horford
Milwaukee Bucks Starting Lineup
PG: Damian Lillard
SG: Malik Beasley
SF: Khris Middleton
PF: Giannis Antetokounmpo
C: Brook Lopez
Boston Celtics Vs. Milwaukee Bucks Injuries
Boston’s injury report should be pretty light in this game against Milwaukee, which will be the second night of a back-to-back unless it decides to rest some of its core players. Kristaps Porzingis is the only player listed on the report, and he has a questionable designation due to a knee contusion. Porzingis missed the C’s game last night against Minnesota. The Milwaukee Bucks will be in a similar situation as Jae Crowder (groin) is the only player listed on the injury report as of Thursday morning.
