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With the seeding games complete inside the NBA “bubble” in Orlando, the Milwaukee Bucks begin their first round playoff matchup with the Orlando Magic beginning at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The other three currently scheduled games are Thursday at 5 p.m., Saturday at 12 p.m., and Monday at 12:30 p.m., with games five through seven every other day after that, if necessary. The top seeded Bucks are expected to move easily past Orlando, but here are some key factors to watch for in the series:
Bubble Troubles
While the Bucks entered the NBA restart with a league-best record of 53-12, they’ve lost five of eight games in the bubble. However, the neutral site record can be deceiving, as the team had all but locked up the top overall seed in the Eastern Conference prior to the resumption of the season. On the other end of things, the Magic entered the bubble under .500, with a 30-35 record as the season was paused. Orlando also went 3-5 during the seeding games, narrowly advancing to the playoffs as the eight seed.
An Aggressive Greek Freak
In his six active games during the restart, Giannis Antetokounmpo averaged 27.8 points per game as well as just over four assists, and did so while only playing in half of two of those games. He also comes into game one fresh off of a one-game suspension for headbutting Washington Wizards center Moritz Wagner. Giannis missed the final seeding game, and hasn’t had much to play for since the restart, other than cementing his back-to-back MVP campaign. Look for a rested, aggressive Greek Freak heading into the playoffs.
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Missing Magic Forwards
Going into game one, the Magic are going to be missing some strength at power forward, with Jonathan Isaac suffering a torn ACL in the seeding games and Aaron Gordon dealing with hamstring issues heading into Tuesday’s game. The team still has a pair of stars in Nikola Vucevic and Markelle Fultz, but missing those key components could create more of an uphill battle for the Magic, especially against a completely healthy Bucks team.
Head-To-Head Advantage
Going into the playoffs, the Bucks are undefeated against the Magic in four meetings this season. Their most recent win was a 111-98 win back in February. Anything can happen in the bubble, of course, but on paper things are looking promising for Milwaukee in the first round.
You can watch the Bucks take on the Magic with coverage beginning at 12 p.m. on Tuesday, on TNT and Fox Sports Wisconsin.
