NBA Power Rankings set up for epic Milwaukee Bucks-Los Angeles Lakers clash

Milwaukee Bucks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Los Angeles Lakers Wilt Chamberlain. Copyright 1971 NBAE (Photo by Vernon Biever/NBAE via Getty Images)
Milwaukee Bucks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Los Angeles Lakers Wilt Chamberlain. Copyright 1971 NBAE (Photo by Vernon Biever/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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NBA Milwaukee Bucks Khris Middleton
Milwaukee Bucks Khris Middleton. Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images /

Milwaukee Bucks. 1. team. 89. . 24-3. Previous:

Last week: Beat Orlando 110-101, beat New Orleans 127-112, won at Memphis 127-114, beat Cleveland 125-108

This week: Monday vs. Dallas, Thursday vs. Lakers, Saturday at New York

This winning streak thing is getting serious now for the Milwaukee Bucks. With a 4-0 week last week, they’ve run their unbeaten string to 18 games, one away from matching the seventh-longest streak in NBA history and two off the franchise record of 20 straight wins set from Feb. 6-March 8, 1971. It

It’s now the NBA’s longest winning streak since Golden State’s 24 straight games to open the 2015-16 season (yes, the streak was 28 games dating back to the last four games of the 2014-15 regular season, but can a winning streak really take six months off?).

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Milwaukee has dealt with some adversity along the way. Giannis Antetokounmpo sat out Wednesday’s win over the Pelicans with a sore quad tendon and the Bucks didn’t miss a beat, cruising to a 15-point victory without the reigning MVP.

The next challenge will be over the next two weeks, with point guard Eric Bledsoe going down with an avulsion fracture of his right fibula. The team made the announcement Saturday after Bledsoe was injured during the third quarter at Memphis on Friday night.

Against the Cavaliers Saturday night, second-year guard Donte DiVincenzo replaced Bledsoe in the starting lineup. DiVincenzo had made 10 starts from Nov. 14-30 when Khris Middleton was out with a bruised quad. In 25 minutes in the romp over the Cavs, he had 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting, making 1-of-2 from deep, to go with five rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Milwaukee brought Frank Mason, on a two-way contract, back from the G League’s Wisconsin Herd for some depth in the backcourt.

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Middleton had a nice week overall, averaging 23.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 29.5 minutes per game, shooting 52.1 percent overall and making 45.8 percent of his 6.0 3-point tries per game. Against the Cavaliers, Middleton scored 24 points in just 23 minutes, going 8-for-12 overall, hitting 3-of-4 from deep, and getting six assists.