Milwaukee Bucks vs Cleveland Cavaliers Prediction: A game plagued with injuries

The NBA Regular Season has brought to us many enticing battles and so far, there have been some unprecedented rise of teams that were expected to be below-par. Anyway, we are barely one month into the season and a lot can change in the upcoming time as injuries also mount up at a high rate. In another injury-filled game, the Milwaukee Bucks will take on the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Bucks come into this game after losing 106:121 to the Hawks despite a 27 points performance by Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Bucks clearly missed the presence of their premier guard Jrue Holiday who is a huge difference-maker on both ends. They began the season with a nine-game winning streak but have lost three in the four games. During two of those losses, the Bucks have played short-handed which has stalled their progress. They are already missing their second-best scorer Khris Middleton so the matters become daunting when either of Giannis or Jrue missed the game.

The Bucks top defense has been hit due to injuries. Of course, Jrue is their best perimeter defender and without their floor-leader, the Bucks look like an incohesive unit, solely dependent upon the production of Giannis. Despite the current losses, a strong start means that the Bucks are not underperforming in the overall scheme and have ample time to recover. They are tight on both ends of the floor and when Giannis gets it going, they look like an unbeatable team. But will they be able to recover their earlier rhythm soon?

The Cavaliers come into this game after losing 124:129 against the Minnesota Timberwolves despite a herculean 51 points performance by their Point Darius Garland. They played without Donovan Mitchell and Jarrett Allen. The Cavs like the Bucks were off to a phenomenal start, winning eight of their nine but have lost four in a row as the Western Conference road trip tools its toll. Without Allen and Mitchell, they were affected on both ends but even when they were present, the Cavs' defense looked like a shadow of what it was in the earlier weeks.

Garland’s 51 points explosion came due to him dominating the ball and now he has had to share the ball with Mitchell, and that can be a bit tricky for someone who was the sole main ball-handler for the starting unit last season. Caris LeVert has been an all-around performance while Evan Mobley has been solid but the Cavs’ defense has taken a hit in recent days. Their offense has been getting the job but they will need to recover their defense to sustain something special.

• Bucks: OUT: Joe Ingles, Khris Middleton, Wesley Matthews. DOUBTFUL: Grayson Allen, AJ Green. QUESTIONABLE: Jrue Holiday, Pat Connaughton;
• Cavaliers: OUT: Ricky Rubio, Dylan Windler, Jarrett Allen. QUESTINABLE: Donovan Mitchell. DOUBTFUL: Dean Wade.

• Expected Leading Scorers: Giannis Antetokounmpo(27+ Points), Donovan Mitchell(26-33 Points), Darius Garland(22+ Points);
• Expected Leading Playmakers: Darius Garland(8-12 Assists), Jrue Holiday(7-10 Assists);
• Expected Leading Rebounders: Giannis Antetokounmpo(12+ Rebounds), Evan Mobley(9-13 Rebounds).

The Bucks’ effort can be bolstered if Jrue Holiday returns and for the Cavs it will be the same if Donovan Mitchell return but this is something that I haven’t figured out at the time of writing(whether they will play or not). Not having Jarrett Allen will make it harder to contain the physical presence of Giannis Antetokounmpo. Scoring has been a bit of an issue for the Bucks lately and they will love to get going on that end but their defense strangely has been off too.

Giannis will be tackled mostly by Mobley who is a great defender but even he can have a tough time against this athletic menace. The Bucks will need to shut down the perimeter or they will be in danger of repeating the result against the Hawks. I don’t believe they will repeat the result and end up victorious here. I see the points range in 225-235.