It has been a rough stretch of basketball for the Milwaukee Bucks. They are just 4-11 in their last 15 games. Luckily, the schedule has gifted this team an opportunity to right the ship. The question is whether the Bucks can take advantage of it, something they haven’t done thus far this season.
The Bucks need to win six of their next eight games
The next eight games to finish the year feature matchups against the Nets, Raptors, Wolves, Pacers, Grizzlies, Bulls, Hornets, and Wizards. Aside from Toronto and Minnesota, all of those teams have a losing record so far this season. Six of those eight games are very winnable. This is a prime opportunity for Milwaukee to get back on track and pull its record back to .500 (17-17).
The reason fans might be worried is that these seemingly easy-win games haven’t been good for Milwaukee so far this season. The Bucks have dropped games against the lowly Kings (Nov 1), Hornets (Nov 12), and Wizards (Dec 1), all teams Milwaukee should beat. They cannot afford to drop any of these games if they hope to salvage their season.
The team has been on a downward spiral since Giannis Antetokounmpo missed time with a groin injury back in November.
In just his second game back (Dec 3) after missing six games (all losses), he suffered a calf strain against Detroit and has been on the shelf ever since. If the team can take advantage of this soft stretch of games, they should get their superstar back in time before the competition ramps back up.
The importance of stacking these wins can’t be emphasized enough. The caliber of teams on the schedule to start the year reaches a whole new level. In the span of two weeks from January 7-21, the Bucks play the Warriors, Lakers, Nuggets, Wolves, Spurs, Hawks, and Thunder. All of these teams have winning records. If Milwaukee doesn’t take advantage of this soft stretch, it could get buried in losses to start the year.
With so much uncertainty surrounding this team and its franchise player. Winning is the only thing that can quiet the noise. The Bucks have a chance to do a lot of winning through the rest of this month. They simply must take advantage because if they don’t, Giannis might be on his way out, and their season might be too far gone to save.