The Milwaukee Bucks have clinched the top record in the NBA, giving them home court advantage all the way through the NBA Finals. It's been an historic season in Milwaukee and after years and years of rebuilding, they're finally starting to see the fruits of their labors. If you've been reading NBALord.com over the years, you would know that I've always believed in the trajectory of this Bucks team and that it would only be a matter of time before they seriously contend for a championship. They're young, hungry, and have a legitimate franchise player in Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is putting himself in the MVP discussion with his 27.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game. They have all the pieces.
The only concern right now for this Bucks team is health. Malcolm Brogdon (15.6 points & 4.5 rebounds) is out indefinitely with a foot injury, Nikola Mirotic (15.2 points & 7.4 rebounds) is out for at least a couple more weeks due to a fractured thumb, Tony Snell (6.0 points) is out indefinitely with a sprained ankle, Pau Gasol (3.9 points) is out indefinitely with a left ankle injury, and Donte DiVincenzo (4.9 points) is out for the rest of the season with a heel injury. The losses of Brogdon and Mirotic are the most significant, but when you add three more guys to the injury report as well, that really starts to take its toll.
Fortunately for the Bucks, they have that top seed and Antetokounmpo is healthy, so they should be able to get out of the first round of the playoffs regardless. That said, at this time of year, you want to be as healthy as possible since injuries could still loom ahead in the playoffs. Plus, even if these guys do all come back (aside from DiVincenzo), it's not yet clear how productive they'll be.
The Bucks are sort of in a weird spot. They should be feeling good about clinching the top seed in the NBA and yet at the same time be worried about the accumulation of injuries. With the way the NBA playoffs are structured, it's not only the best teams that come out on top, it's the healthiest. We saw that last year when Chris Paul's hamstring cost the Houston Rockets a trip to the NBA Finals.
At this point, all the Bucks can do is make sure they get through the first round as efficiently as possible. If they're able to get more rest and not have an elongated opening series, chances are they'll be able to have a relatively healthy squad come the second round. If instead they have a series that gets pushed to six or heaven forbid seven games, they could be looking at an early exit, even if they manage to squeak out of the first round. It'll be interesting to see how they handle things in the coming days and weeks.
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