7 Biggest Threats to the Celtics' Chances to Repeat as NBA Champions
By Andrew Fiore
5. Milwaukee Bucks
After trading for Damian Lillard to complement Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks looked poised to return to the NBA Finals. In the subsequent seasons since they won it all in 2021, the Bucks fell in a hard-fought seven-game series against Boston and then clinched the top seed in the East before getting upset by the eight-seed Miami Heat.
They had finally acquired the star they had been looking for to pair with Antetokounmpo and anticipated the return of Khris Middleton from injury. Yet once the season began, the team failed to mesh on the court. First-year head coach Adrian Griffin was fired despite the team's 30-13 record, after the locker room was in disarray.
Replacement Doc Rivers could not right the ship in time and injuries ravaged the team, setting up a second consecutive first-round exit.
It would appear that Milwaukee is a team whose championship window is dwindling and whose best days are behind them. Rumors swirl about Antetokounmpo leaving, Lillard had trouble adjusting to his new team, and Middleton failed to stay healthy again.
Yet if the team can avoid the calamity of errors that occurred last season, there are several reasons they can prove even more dangerous to Boston than the previous two teams, and even the rival Heat and the fully loaded 76ers in the East.
Antetokounmpo remains one of the top players in the sport, coming off of his sixth consecutive All-NBA first team appearance, and his second consecutive season averaging over 30 points per game. Despite not practicing for part of the offseason and having to adjust to a new team and two new head coaches for the first time in his career, Lillard still proved capable of posting huge performances. A fully adjusted Lillard could prove dangerous for any opponent.
This offseason, the team made savvy additions in Gary Trent Jr. and Taurean Prince. On top of that, a fully healthy Khris Middleton coupled with the ever-underrated Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis Jr. add more depth than Miami or Philadelphia can offer.
As Boston faithful remember, Milwaukee is no stranger to deep playoff runs and has consistently been a difficult matchup for Team Green in the postseason. Before they can worry about a finals matchup with overmatched Dallas or inexperienced Oklahoma City, Boston may have to get past a deep, experienced, and overlooked Milwaukee team right in their own conference that is more hungry than ever to reclaim the East.