There Could Be Value in Wagering on the Celtics to Represent the EC

The announcement has already been made that the NBA will resume its 2019/20 season on July 30, with the opening game being between the New Orleans Pelicans and the Utah Jazz. The Clippers and the Lakers will then face off in a big game between the two teams in the Western Conference.
However, looking towards the Eastern Conference, many have found themselves turning their attention to the Milwaukee Bucks, who have been pretty much running the sector with their 53-12 standing. The Bucks stand out as being the -175 favourites to represent the EC in the Finals.

However, the Celtics are right behind them in second place, while the Toronto Raptors come in at third.

Prior to the basketball break though, the teams of Boston, Milwaukee and Toronto were the only ones to have registered at least 20 road wins in the Eastern Conference. That could actually spell the different in this tournament, where there won’t be a single team that has a home-court advantage on their side. With this being the case, the Celtics stand out as being the biggest challenge to the Bucks in representing the East in the Finals.

It already stands to reason that Milwaukee has plenty of backing, indeed. This is noticeable at various sportsbooks. You only need to locate one through Nostrabet.com and you’ll see that the Bucks pretty much stand atop the rankings for the EC. Many of the platforms on Nostrabet have been reviewed by experts as well, so you will find credible sportsbooks to place your own sports bets on the NBA once it returns.

Why the Celtics Stand Out Against Milwaukee

The primary weakness of the Bucks is that they tend to struggle when it comes to the three-pointer. It is this that has remained as a permanent downfall throughout the 2019/20 season. Milwaukee has been registered as the team that allows opponents to hit the most three-point attempts per game, whilst also attempting the most itself.

The Celtics (and potentially even the Toronto Raptors) may have a shot at representing the East in the Finals if they could exploit that three-pointer weakness. It’s the definitive route to take when going up against Milwaukee. Celtics holds opponents to 34.2% from three, while the Raptors lead the league with 33.7%. As it happens though, the Celtics need to outdo the Raptors before they can compete against the Bucks.

Fortunately, Boston stands 2-1 against Toronto this season. Kawhi Leonard helped the Raptors to go on a wondrous run last season, and they have continued a certain level of that success this season, too. In fact, they had a 15-game winning streak that occurred between January 15 and February 10. However, their streaks come and go, so if they go through a cold spell, the Celtics could really take advantage of this.

The Celtics, on the other hand, were the only team in the NBA to feature three players who averaged 20 or more points per game. Leonard left the Raptors to go to the Clippers, which means that the Celtics stand at a higher advantage. Furthermore, without Leonard, it seems unlikely that the Toronto team will be able to overcome the Milwaukee side, which puts a lot more confidence in Boston’s abilities to provide the biggest challenge to the Bucks.