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2019 NBA Playoffs: Milwaukee Bucks vs. Boston Celtics preview

By Shea Norling

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - FEBRUARY 21: Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks is defended by Al Horford #42 of the Boston Celtics during a game at Fiserv Forum on February 21, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - FEBRUARY 21: Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks is defended by Al Horford #42 of the Boston Celtics during a game at Fiserv Forum on February 21, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images
Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images /

The Milwaukee Bucks will take on the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals of the 2019 NBA Playoffs. Here’s a look at how the series will break down.

It’s a case of role reversal in the Eastern Conference semifinals, at least as far as preseason predictions are concerned. The Boston Celtics were the team everyone expected to enter the 2019 NBA Playoffs as the conference’s top seed.

Per Odds Shark, the Celtics were projected to win a total of 58.5 games and the Milwaukee Bucks closed at 48 wins. While Celtics super-fan and media mogul Bill Simmons infamously predicted Boston would win 67 games, it was actually Milwaukee that finished atop the conference with 60 wins. Boston, on the other hand, won just 48 games, going under even the Bucks’ projected total.

The Celtics underachieved all season long. A 6-2 start to the year was hampered by a 4-8 stretch that followed. When it looked like they found their footing during a 10-1 stretch in January, they followed it up with a 2-6 finish to the month of February.

The Bucks, however, overachieved throughout the season. Giannis Antetokounmpo has all but locked up the league’s Most Valuable Player award after a campaign that saw him average 27.7 points per game without a consistent 3-point shot. In fact, Giannis had the most dominant interior scoring season in league history if you ignore a guy named Shaquille O’Neal, and joined Charles Barkley as the only qualified player in history to average at least 27.5 points a night on 57 percent shooting from the field and 64 percent true shooting.

After dismantling the undermanned Detroit Pistons in four games, the Bucks look to advance past a Celtics team coming off a first round sweep of its own. Riding a 10-2 stretch dating back to the end of the regular season, Boston will look to pull an upset and advance to its third consecutive Eastern Conference Finals.

Here is a look at the key matchup, three key questions and our final prediction for this Eastern Conference semifinals showdown.