Bucks News: Vegas Called Out For Disrespecting Milwaukee in Title Odds

Bettors are pessimistic about the club's championship chances.

Mar 10, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) and center Brook Lopez (11) and guard Damian Lillard (0) on the court during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images / Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Armed with a perennial All-NBA First Teamer in power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and an eight-time All-Star still at the tail of his prime in point guard Damian Lillard, the Milwaukee Bucks finished as the Eastern Conference's No. 3 seed last year, albeit with a middling 49-33 record. But the team has been something of an afterthought this offseason, after being bounced in the first round of the playoffs by the sixth-seeded Indiana Pacers and making under-the-radar (but enticing) free agent signings.

The Boston Celtics are the reigning league champions, and look like the favorites to emerge out of the Eastern Conference again, even if Kristaps Porzingis does indeed miss half the season. The New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers made bold moves to revamp their rosters, bringing in fresh All-Star talent and bolstering their depth around their incumbent All-NBA guards. The Orlando Magic poached a two-time champion swingman in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. The Cavaliers swapped out their head coach and extended many of their stars.

By comparison, bringing in Gary Trent Jr., Taurean Prince and Delon Wright in free agency — all savvy moves — didn't garner all that much attention. But does that mean the Bucks are past their expiration date?

Zach Harper and Shams Charania of The Athletic recently took stock of BetMGM's 2025 championship odds, which found the Bucks severely wanting after their postseason shortcomings.

"But it feels a little off to me that the Bucks (+1400) and Suns (+1500) are not higher or more highly regarded as title contenders going into this season," Harper and Charania wrote (they are using the singular "me," not the plural "us," and if we had to speculate, based on the more conversational writing approach this blurb feels more Harper than Charania).

The Bucks, specifically, are better than their poor finish may have led many to believe. The Suns got walloped in a first round playoff sweep, with zero injury excuses to blame.

"You can look at those odds and say they’re right there with that third-tier cluster of teams," both writers are credited as having noted. "And technically that’s true. But you don’t really hear people talking about the way the Bucks and Suns have potentially fixed their most problematic situations from a season ago. Meanwhile, everybody is talking about the teams ahead of them."

The Athletic authors note that the Bucks survived a midseason coaching change, persevering to win the aforementioned 49 contests and No. 3 seed. Damian Lillard, hoping all summer for a deal, avoided training to make sure he didn't get hurt — and thus was out of shape to start the season. Milwaukee's offense ranked among the league's six best, while injuries forced Antetokounmpo to miss the entire postseason and Lillard to miss two of the team's six games against Indiana. Both authors also approve of the Trent, Prince and Wright signings.

"The Bucks are not that far removed from their 2021 NBA title. Yes, the Doc Rivers of it all can be confusing, as he tends to make excuses more than solutions for his team’s issues," Harper (and, presumably, Charania) writes. "And Khris Middleton isn’t starting out healthy. But this team was a preseason favorite a year ago for a reason. I suspect this team will surprise a lot of people this year. The Bucks just need to play solid defense and keep the Dame-Giannis two-man game rolling."

More Bucks: Damian Lillard Details 'Toughest Year' of His Life in First Season with Milwaukee