Milwaukee Bucks vs Golden State Warriors prediction and combined starting 5 - April 6th, 2021 | NBA season 2020-21
The Milwaukee Bucks will visit the Golden State Warriors for an inter-conference matchup in the 2020-21 NBA on Tuesday.
The Bucks have been operating under the radar, but they have been in good recent form. Meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors have struggled to get results this season and are tenth in the Western Conference after a 23-27 start to their season.
While Steve Kerr's team are out of postseason reckoning at the moment, the 32-17 Milwaukee Bucks are third in the Eastern Conference and are only two games behind the Brooklyn Nets.
In their first meeting of the season on Christmas Day, the Milwaukee Bucks ran out 138-99 victors.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Golden State Warriors Prediction
The Milwaukee Bucks are on a high, winning 16 times in their last 20 games and have shown good depth in their roster. Even though Giannis Antetokounmpo has been stellar this season, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton have also played their roles for Mike Budenholzer's team.
Meanwhile, in their last ten games, the Golden State Warriors have won only thrice. However, Steve Kerr's team have a 14-9 record at home this season and will fancy their chances of ending their three-game losing streak at the Chase Center.
This season, the Golden State Warriors have largely struggled on the offensive side of the ball. Even though Stephen Curry has put up 29 points per game, the Warriors are 22nd in Offensive Rating. In defense, the Golden State Warriors have fared better, as is evident in their ninth rank in Defensive Rating.
The Milwaukee Bucks are the heavy favorites against the Golden State Warriors, even though the reigning MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo, could miss the game due to knee injury.
On that note, let's have a look at a hypothetical combined starting 5 of the two teams.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Golden State Warriors combined starting 5
Point Guard - Stephen Curry | Shooting Guard - Jrue Holiday | Small Forward - Khris Middleton | Power Forward - Draymond Green | Center - Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Stephen Curry is arguably the best point guard in the league at the moment. Even at the age of 33, he has put up tremendous numbers offensively for the Golden State Warriors. The two-time NBA MVP winner, playing his 12th season in the competition, has put up 29 points, six assists and 5.5 rebounds per game with 48/41/93 shooting splits this campaign.
Meanwhile, for the Milwaukee Bucks, Jrue Holiday is currently on a high; he is fresh off signing a four-year, $160-million contract extension with the Bucks. In his first season with the team, Holiday has been key for the Bucks, tallying 17 points, 5.4 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
Holiday has also had a big defensive presence (second in the team in Defensive Rating), putting up 51/39/82 shooting splits in his 12th NBA season.
Khris Middleton is another former All-Star who is performing at a high level for the Milwaukee Bucks. Middleton, who probably should've been an All-Star this year, is averaging 20 points, six rebounds and 5.5 assists per game and has had extraordinary shooting splits (49/43/89).
Meanwhile, with the current construction of the Golden State Warriors' roster, Draymond Green has become even more important for the team on both sides of the court. Green is leading the Golden State Warriors in assists (8.5 per game) and also has the best Defensive Rating in the team (108).
Two-time reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo rounds off our hypothetical combined starting five.
Antetokounmpo is coming off dominating performances in the last two regular seasons, winning consecutive MVP awards and also the Defensive Player of the Year award last year. This season, Antetokounmpo has shown a new dimension to his game.
The Greek superstar is arguably playing at the best level of his career and might win his third consecutive MVP award.
He is averaging 28.8 points, 11.4 rebounds, a career-high 6.2 assists, a steal and a block per game this campaign. He has had 32 double-doubles (fourth-most in the league) and seven triple-doubles (fifth-most in the league) this season.
Also Read: Milwaukee Bucks vs Golden State Warriors Prediction & Match Preview - April 6th, 2021 | NBA Season 2020-21.