MILWAUKEE, Wis. — A new season means a fresh start for all 30 NBA teams. It doesn’t matter if you won the NBA championship like the Boston Celtics or finished dead last like the Detroit Pistons, every team can begin the 2024-25 NBA regular season with a fresh start.
As for the Milwaukee Bucks, they will certainly be one of the teams with the highest expectations next season.
After winning the NBA championship just a few seasons ago in 2021, the Bucks enter this year with hopes of hoisting the Larry O’Brien championship trophy for the second time since the start of the new decade.
The blockbuster addition last September of the Damian Lillard trade before the start of last season heightened expectations of a championship or bust before Milwaukee’s season ended at the hands of the Indiana Pacers, largely because of the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo, who missed the entire first-round postseason series with a left calf injury.
With Antetokounmpo now healthy and fresh off a breakout campaign at the 2024 Paris Olympics with Team Greece, the Bucks are preparing to return to their 2021 form.
But before Antetokounmpo and the rest of his teammates can make any headway into the playoffs, they’ll need to position themselves well in a stacked Eastern Conference alongside the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics and other formidable contenders like the New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers this regular season.
That said, based on the first 10 games of their schedule, the Bucks appear to have their work cut out for them early and often as they will have to face every opponent listed above aside from the Pacers.
OCTOBER
Wednesday, October 23 – Philadelphia (7:30 p.m. (CT) TV: ESPN)
Friday, October 25 – Home vs. Chicago Bulls (7 p.m. CT)
Sunday, October 27 – at Brooklyn Nets, (6:00 p.m. (CT))
Monday, October 28 – Boston (7:30 p.m. (CT) TV: NBATV)
Thursday, October 31 – Memphis (7 p.m. CT) TV: NBATV
NOVEMBER
Sat., Nov. 2 – Home vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (7 p.m. CT)
Monday, November 4 – at Cleveland Cavaliers (6 p.m. (CT) TV: NBATV
Thursday, November 7 – home vs. Utah Jazz (7 p.m. CT)
Fri. Nov. 8 – at New York Knicks, (6:30 p.m. (CT))
Sunday, November 10 – Home vs. Boston Celtics (2:30 p.m. CT)
If there’s one thing every NBA fan knows, it’s that health will always be the most important factor in a team’s potential for a deep playoff run.
Despite Antetokounmpo and Lillard’s ability to each play 73 regular-season games, Milwaukee’s other leading scorer, three-time NBA All-Star Khris Middleton, played just 55 regular-season games last season, including some last year as an opener with a minutes restriction.
It’s no secret that Milwaukee caught the injury bug at a bad time last year, but fear no more as the dynamic trio is ready to enter the season at full strength, which could easily help the Bucks get off to a good start.
With Milwaukee considered a top contender in the East, they will have an early opportunity to see where they stand against some of the other top teams in their conference. With two games against the Cavaliers and Celtics as well as a game against the 76ers and Knicks all scheduled in the first 10 games of the schedule, the Bucks will be able to gauge exactly where they stand early.
The early opportunity to test their skills against most of the East’s top threats will be an early indicator of how far this team can go once the playoffs arrive.
Antetokounmpo’s incredible talent has helped grow the Milwaukee Bucks’ brand since his draft in 2013. His team’s fan base has grown significantly beyond state lines and globally. As a result, many fans outside of the Cheese State of Wisconsin don’t have the luxury of being able to cheer on the Bucks every night on national television.
Luckily for its fans, Milwaukee will have four nationally televised games, with its season opener against the 76ers airing on ESPN and games against the Celtics (Oct. 28), Memphis Grizzlies (Oct. 31) and Cleveland (Nov. 4) all airing on NBATV.
Boston is arguably Milwaukee’s biggest threat to exit the Eastern Conference and so while it’s nice to get a chance to see them early, it’s not ideal to play two of their three total regular-season matchups against each other so early in the season.
Over the past two seasons, both teams have finished first in the Eastern Conference, with the Celtics taking first place last year and the Bucks the year before.
Playoff positioning could very well come down to head-to-head matchups, and both teams could certainly find themselves having to win the season series against each other to secure the top seed.
It’s always nice when a team can open the season on their home court, but unfortunately for the Bucks, that won’t be the case.
Set to travel to Philadelphia for its season opener for the second straight year on Oct. 23, Milwaukee will have to get used to playing on the road starting now. After the clash with the 76ers, the Bucks will be on the road for five of their next eight games, giving them six road games in total in their first nine games.
Given that the Bucks finished below .500% on the road last season (18-22), it will be important to see if they can turn the page and start the season strong while playing primarily as visitors.
