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The No. 2 seed Boston Celtics will meet the No. 3 seed Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of the East playoffs with both teams having championship aspirations. The Celtics swept the Brooklyn Nets to cement themselves as contenders, while the Bucks are the defending champions coming off a dominant performance against the Chicago Bulls. Here’s a look at the series odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Celtics vs. Bucks predictions
Odds to win series: Celtics -210, Bucks +175
The impact of Khris Middleton’s injury is clear. The guard might not have made a difference against a depleted Bulls team, but the Celtics are a different machine. Boston is fully healthy and operating at a high level on both ends of the floor. With Middleton out, that’s one less player for the Celtics to worry about. Stopping Giannis Antetokounmpo will be tough but Boston just shut down Kevin Durant for four games. Throw in the Celtics having homecourt advantage and they are rightfully favored to win this series.
Pick: Celtics in 7 games
Picking against Antetokounmpo is risky, especially if the Bucks supporting cast is playing this well. Milwaukee is also solid defensively, which means there won’t be any blown leads like there were in the Nets series. The Celtics will ultimately prevail with homecourt advantage but this will be tough series.
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