This Sunday, (22-10) Milwaukee dollars will travel to Boston, MA to face the (23-10) Boston Celtics. Tipoff will take place at 5:00 PM EST inside the TD Garden. This will be the first time these two teams face off this season, as I’m expecting a battle on Christmas Day!
The Milwaukee Bucks enter this one after falling to the Brooklyn Nets, 118-110 on Friday. Milwaukee struggled on the defensive side of the field as they allowed the Nets to shoot 49.5 percent from the floor. They’ll have to contest more shots in this one if they want to challenge the Celtics on the road.
The Boston Celtics come into this game having beaten the Minnesota Timberwolves, 121-109 on Friday. Boston looked great on both ends of the floor, as they will need to remain efficient in this one if they are to take care of business at home.
Can the dollars rebound on Christmas Day?
The Milwaukee Bucks currently sit second in the Eastern Conference Standings, as they trail the Celtics in first place by 0.5 per game. On offense, they’re scoring 112.5 points per game and shooting 46.1 percent from the floor. This is the 17th-highest number of points scored per contest and the 22nd-highest team shooting percentage. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Bucks have an adjusted offensive efficiency rating of 112.2, which is the 15th highest rating in the NBA. Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to lead the way on the attacking side of the field, as he is scoring 31.6 points per game on 53.7% shooting from the field. Milwaukee have also shown they are much more successful when attacking the basket. They only shot 35 percent from deep, which is the 17th-highest three-point shooting percentage. Milwaukee also continued to drop runs on the field. They’re shooting just 74 percent from the charity strip, which is the 27th-highest free throw percentage in the league.
On the defensive side of the field, the Milwaukee Bucks give up 109.2 points and they forced their opponents to shoot 45.1 percent from the floor. This is the fifth-lowest number of points allowed per game and the second-lowest shooting percentage allowed. According to dunksandthree.com, the Bucks have an adjusted defensive rating of 109.1, which is the second-lowest rating in the NBA. Milwaukee also continued to challenge shots near the rim and on the outside. They are holding opponents to 35 percent shooting from behind the arc, which is the ninth-lowest three-point shooting percentage allowed. The Bucks also continued to break offensive and defensive goggles. They’re pulling off 48.3 rebounds per game, which is the second most. They can’t allow the Celtics to score second chance points if they want to stay in this game.
Injury report: Kris Middleton SF (knee) is questionable.
Are the Celtics warming up?
The Boston Celtics are still in first place in the Eastern Conference Standings, as they have a 0.5 game lead over the second-placed Bucks. On offense, they’re scoring 118.1 points per game and they’re shooting 47.6 percent from the floor. This is the second-highest number of points scored per contest and the 12th-highest team shooting percentage. According to dunksandthree.com, the Celtics have an adjusted offensive rating of 117.3, which is the highest rating in the NBA. Jayson Tatum continues to lead the way on the offensive side of the field, as he scores 30.6 points per game on 47.2% shooting from the field. Boston has also shown they have multiple players who can sneak behind the arc and make it rain. They are shooting 37.6 percent from deep, which is the sixth-highest three-point shooting percentage in the league. The Boston Celtics will also have to stay warm at the charity strip. They’ve hit 82.8% of their free throws this season, the highest percentage in the NBA. They can’t miss those free looks at the basket and always expect to win those games.
On the defensive side of the field, the Celtics allow 112.2 points and they forced their opponents to shoot 46.6 percent from the floor. This is the 13th-lowest number of points awarded per contest and the 13th-lowest shooting percentage allowed. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Celtics have an adjusted defensive rating of 111.6, which is the eighth-lowest rating in the NBA. Boston has also shown that they will challenge shots near the edge and on the perimeter. They allow opponents to shoot 35.1 percent from behind the arc, which is the 10th-lowest three-point shooting percentage allowed in the league. The Boston Celtics will also have to continue to break glass offensively and defensively. They’re grabbing 43.8 rebounds per game, 11th most.
Injury report: Robert Williams III C (illness) is questionable.
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I will take the Celtics and I will put the points (-4.5) at home. They score the second most points per game and they have continued to score from anywhere on the field. They’ll attack the basket and rain it up and down because I don’t see the Bucks being able to slow them down. I also don’t see the Bucks being able to score enough points to cover that gap. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Bucks have the 15th highest adjusted offensive rating and they’re only scoring the 17th most points per game. Boston will be showing up at both ends of the field and getting consistent saves throughout this game. This will lead to easy points the other way as the Celtics will slowly pull out on Christmas Day. Boston is better defensively than most people think and Tatum and Brown will want to start ahead of the whole country. The Boston Celtics will dominate both ends of the field and take care of home business.
Choose the Celtics and score the points (-4.5).
Prediction: Boston Celtics -4.5
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Full Game Total Choice
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I’m going to hammer the under (225.5) in this game, as I don’t see any of these teams scoring enough points to push that total over the number. The Milwaukee Bucks are one of the best defensive teams in the league because I see them making it difficult for the Celtics to score consistently in this game. They will apply pressure near the rim and on the outside as the Celtics will struggle to find open shots. I also see these two teams slowing the ball down and limiting the number of shots from the ground. According to dunksandthrees.com, they have the 14th and 15th highest adjusted pace ratings, as they won’t be sprinting the ball downfield in this game. It will be an average tempo and both of these teams are good enough defensively to keep that total under the number. Boston has the ninth-lowest adjusted defensive rating and the Bucks have the second-lowest. They are two of the best defensive teams in the NBA, because I see it being a battle until the very end. The under is also 4-1 in the last five meetings between these two teams in Boston. I’m going to trust the story in this one.
Choose the least (225.5) and expect a defensive battle!
Prediction: Under 225.5
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