The Brooklyn Nets aren’t getting the kind of action they were at this time last year when some had them as the favorite to win the O’Brien Trophy. It’s a different looking club but they still have Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving to go along with a rejuvenated Ben Simmons making them a legitimate threat in the Eastern Conference. The Nets will go as far as that trio takes them and they played well against Toronto to pick up their first win of the young campaign. The hierarchy in the East will be tested on Wednesday when the Nets visit the Milwaukee Bucks, another club considered a contender in the conference.
The contest between the Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks takes place at 7:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, October 26, 2022, from Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee and will air live on ESPN. BookMaker.eu will have odds for every game on the Wednesday NBA schedule.
NBA Opening Lines at BookMaker.eu
Odds Analysis
Things went downhill for the Nets in the series when they dropped the final two games of the East semifinals in the 2021 playoffs. Including those games they are just 2-7 SU and 3-6 ATS against the Bucks over the last nine encounters. We did see Brooklyn bounce back from a rough 130-108 opening night loss to New Orleans to beat Toronto next time out evening their record. There are a few new faces in the lineup notably that of Simmons, so it could take some time for the Nets to find the right rotations while building chemistry.
Chemistry isn’t a concern for the Bucks, who have many of the same players that were part of the 2021 championship squad. And they’ve adjusted to early season life without two key performers in the lineup. Khris Middleton and Pat Connaughton aren’t expected to return to the lineup until the middle of November giving others a chance to step up. The Bucks won their first two games beating Philadelphia 90-88 on the road as a 4.5-point dog then smacking Houston 125-105 as a 13-point favorite.
Brooklyn Nets
You know what you’re getting in Durant and Irving; guys who can fill it up on a nightly basis. The duo combined for 57 points and eight three-pointers in the win over Toronto with KD hitting big shots down the stretch in Brooklyn’s first win. The wild card is Simmons, who didn’t play at all last season. As expected there were some hiccups in the first game. Simmons scored only four points with five assists and fouled out in 23 minutes. It was also a bad game for Irving missing all six three-pointers and hitting 6 of 19 overall for 15 points.
Both players bounced back against Toronto with Simmons playing a big role. He’s not going to score a lot of points leaving that to Kyrie and KD, but he needs to be involved. Simmons played 10 more minutes hitting 3 of 5 shots for six points with 10 rebounds and eight assists. The Nets shots 48 percent from the field with Simmons running the offense.
Milwaukee Bucks
With Giannis Antetokounmpo around the Bucks can get away with missing a few key players. It will be nice to eventually have Middleton and Connaughton back in the lineup making the Bucks even more dangerous, and a good start to the season won’t hasten the return. Giannis had 21 points and 13 boards and Wesley Matthews hit a clutch triple late as part of his eight points. The Bucks beat the Sixers with a sound defensive effort holding Joel Embiid to 15 points and the Sixers to 5 of 24 three-point shooting.
Antetokounmpo was his dominant self a few nights later dropping 44 on the Rockets on 17 of 21 shooting. And we saw the Bucks play the type of offensive game they’ve become known for hitting 56 percent of their shots and 52 percent from behind the arc. As good as the Bucks are scoring the basketball, the defense often gets overlooked. It’s a small sample size but they lead the NBA in scoring defense while holding opponents to under 41 percent shooting from the field.
NBA Odds Pick
This is a meaningful stretch for Milwaukee with a bunch of home games in a row setting them up for a blistering start. They’ve been good in their barn in the past and that’s not likely to change any time soon. I think the Nets will be fine as they work Simmons and Joe Harris into the lineup it’s just going to take a few games for things to click giving the Bucks the advantage.
NBA Odds Prediction: Milwaukee / OVER
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