NBA Regular Season 2023/24, Wednesday, February 07, 2024
In the NBA on Wednesday night, Phoenix and Milwaukee will face off against several superstars. Excitement and quality basketball are guaranteed in the new edition of the 2021 Finals!
At the end of December, the ambitious Phoenix Suns were still in crisis mode with a 14-15 record.
However, the team from Arizona has since recovered (not least thanks to the return of Bradley Beal) and has won 15 of its last 21 games.
With 29 wins and 21 defeats, the Suns currently rank sixth in the Western Conference.
The three-headed scoring behemoth of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Beal – which has only been playing together regularly since the turn of the year – has proven to be as offensively destructive as Suns fans had hoped.
Forward Durant (28.3 points on 53.8% from the field and an outstanding 46.1% from the three-point line) and guards Booker (27.8/50%/38.7%) and Beal (18.1/49.6%/34.5%) undoubtedly form one of the best offensive trios in the NBA.
Together on the hardwood, the three stars are outscoring their opponents by an average of +13 points and have an outstanding Net Rating of 125.7.
Meanwhile,
Grayson Allen knows how to exploit the space this opens up and is currently the most accurate three-point shooter in the world’s best basketball league with a brilliant three-point percentage of 49.1%.
With an offensive rating of 118.2, Phoenix unsurprisingly has an elite offensive rating (seventh place), while its defense is only mediocre (16th place with 115.3).
Meanwhile, opponents from the East seem to suit the team from Arizona, as they have a strong 12-5 record against Eastern Conference teams so far
The Milwaukee Bucks (second in the East at 33-17) are currently in the midst of a recalibration following the surprising dismissal of coach Adrian Griffin.
New head coach Doc Rivers now has the thankless task of getting the 2021 champions back on track defensively in the middle of the season (currently only 19th with a rating of 116.4) and giving the statistically good offense (third with 119.9) more structure.
A key task for Rivers, for example, is likely to be to better showcase superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo and his co-star Damian Lillard (arrived from Portland in the summer) offensively
Because the athletically dominant big man (31.3 points, 11 rebounds, 6.4 assists) and the powerful guard (24.9 points and 6.8 assists with an unusually weak 42.5% field goal percentage and 34.7% three-point percentage) still make far too little use of the devastating potential of their pick-and-roll combo.
The 108:123 defeat to the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City recently showed just how difficult it will be to get the Bucks back into championship contention this season.
However, the fact that the Bucks from Wisconsin have won the last three encounters with the Suns should give them hope.
Nevertheless, I expect the Suns to win, as they are more experienced at both ends of the court and can count on home court advantage.
The fiery Suns have won seven of their last nine home games.
You should also bear in mind that the Suns have only won three of their 29 victories by less than three points!
Since the handicap bet “Suns with -2.5” is traded at Winamax with odds of 1.70 (Suns with HC -3.5 also attractive at 1.80), there is a chance here to take a real stab at the French provider!
My Suns Bucks tip: Suns victory despite handicap -2.5!
