Last year it was a Christmas Day matchup. This season it’s as Americans gear up for their long Thanksgiving weekend. Whatever the occasion, Bucks-Celtics games are to be cherished. Milwaukee continues its road trip after vanquishing the Wizards on Monday night, 142-129. Boston tripped up in Charlotte on the same evening, losing in overtime to the Hornets, 121-118.

The NBA odds deem the host Celtics as -5.5 favourites for the game.

Bucks vs. Celtics NBA Betting Odds

The magnitude of Milwaukee-Boston contests has risen considerably over the past three to four seasons. A couple of playoff meetings and regular races to finish first in the Eastern Conference make these matches all the more special.

Including playoffs, Boston hods a slight 6-4 edge over the past 10 editions. The bewildering outlier – or not, in hindsight – was a late regular season bout in Milwaukee, a playoff preview everyone argued, in which the Celtics hammered their rivals 140-99. Fans would find out a few weeks later that the Bucks were not the playoff contender they believed in. Since then enter Damian Lillard, of course.

After a sluggish start to the season, the Bucks appear to have found their footing. At 10-4, they look strong, especially with a good win over the Mavericks on Saturday. That said, they have a hill to climb if they want to improve their spread record. It’s 5-8-1, although they have covered thrice in a row.

In contrast, Boston has failed to cover three nights in a row. It’s dropped their ATS tally to 6-6-2. They’ve been playing extremely close games on the road lately – playing with fire, some might say – and even winning them hasn’t been enough to cover.

Milwaukee Bucks

One of the two clubs involved in Wednesday’s mouth-watering matchup might have been looking ahead on Monday, but it wasn’t the Bucks. They handled their business in Washington versus the Wizards 142-129.

It was a spectacularly high-scoring contest, with Giannis Antetokounmpo earning a game-high 42 points—more than once he got his own rebound to slam home buckets. Speaking of working in the paint, this was an old-school game (not defensively, mind you). Milwaukee scored 64 points in that area of the court and Washington an incredible 84! Small wonder both sides had shooting efficiencies over 55 per cent. The Wizards could not work against the Bucks off the glass, however, with the visitors ensnaring 55 rebounds to 26. Bobby Portis came off the bench for 17 points. Damian Lillard was okay but nothing special, tallying 22 points but on 5-for-14 shooting.

Milwaukee will have to be careful on Wednesday. Their defence has taken a big hit this season (23rd), as has its rebounding (21st), two categories in which Boston is a top-five side.

Boston Celtics

We hinted that one of the two teams playing on Monday may have had their minds elsewhere. Boston had a nice second-half lead against a Charlotte squad that hasn’t accomplished much this season, yet by the final horn they stared at a 121-118 overtime defeat.

Sometimes even great teams get too cocky. The Celtics aren’t a terrific assist team (24.5 per game, close to the bottom of the league) but Monday’s 19 was egregiously low. As the third and fourth quarters wound down and the Hornets made their comeback that sent the match into the extra session, Boston’s paint defence grew softer and softer. The Hornets comfortably scored layups and dunks when it mattered most, whereas the Celtics went cold. The visitors were uncharacteristically poor at the line, going 18-for-28.

Jayson Tatum had a thrilling game, netting 45 points and 13 boards, but the loss will have many forget all about it. Likewise for Payton Pritchard, who rattled five of his eight shots from distance and finished with 21 points. Credit to the bench, which had vastly superior +/- numbers than any of the starters.

NBA Prediction: Who Will Win Bucks vs. Celtics?

• Regular Season
• Playoffs

Bucks Team Leaders

MIL

Points	Giannis Antetokounmpo 30.44
Assists	Damian Lillard 6.96
Rebounds	Giannis Antetokounmpo 11.52
FG%	Giannis Antetokounmpo 61.1
Steals	Giannis Antetokounmpo 1.19
Blocks	Brook Lopez 2.38

BOS

Points	Jayson Tatum 26.85
Assists	Derrick White 5.16
Rebounds	Jayson Tatum 8.12
FG%	Luke Kornet 70
Steals	Jaylen Brown 1.19
Blocks	Kristaps Porzingis 1.95

MIL

Points	Damian Lillard 31.25
Assists	Patrick Beverley 5.5
Rebounds	Bobby Portis 11.33
FG%	Chris Livingston 100
Steals	Pat Connaughton 1
Blocks	Brook Lopez 1.33

BOS

Points	Jayson Tatum 25
Assists	Jayson Tatum 6.26
Rebounds	Jayson Tatum 9.68
FG%	Neemias Queta 66.7
Steals	Jaylen Brown 1.21
Blocks	Kristaps Porzingis 1.57

• Regular Season
• Playoffs

Celtics Team Leaders

MIL

Points	Giannis Antetokounmpo 30.44
Assists	Damian Lillard 6.96
Rebounds	Giannis Antetokounmpo 11.52
FG%	Giannis Antetokounmpo 61.1
Steals	Giannis Antetokounmpo 1.19
Blocks	Brook Lopez 2.38

BOS

Points	Jayson Tatum 26.85
Assists	Derrick White 5.16
Rebounds	Jayson Tatum 8.12
FG%	Luke Kornet 70
Steals	Jaylen Brown 1.19
Blocks	Kristaps Porzingis 1.95

MIL

Points	Damian Lillard 31.25
Assists	Patrick Beverley 5.5
Rebounds	Bobby Portis 11.33
FG%	Chris Livingston 100
Steals	Pat Connaughton 1
Blocks	Brook Lopez 1.33

BOS

Points	Jayson Tatum 25
Assists	Jayson Tatum 6.26
Rebounds	Jayson Tatum 9.68
FG%	Neemias Queta 66.7
Steals	Jaylen Brown 1.21
Blocks	Kristaps Porzingis 1.57

Injuries

Milwaukee

Khris Middleton (SF)

Prob Thurs Ankle - 01 / 05 / 24

Patrick Beverley (PG)

Prob Thurs Oblique - 01 / 05 / 24

Khris Middleton (SF)

Prob Tues Ankle - 29 / 04 / 24

Patrick Beverley (PG)

Prob Tues Oblique - 29 / 04 / 24

Khris Middleton (SF)

Prob Sun Ankle - 27 / 04 / 24

Khris Middleton (SF)

Prob Fri Ankle - 25 / 04 / 24

Chris Livingston (SF)

Ques Thurs Illness - 25 / 04 / 24

Thanasis Antetokounmpo (SF)

Prob Sun Hamstring - 13 / 04 / 24

MarJon Beauchamp (SF)

Prob Sun Ankle - 13 / 04 / 24

Thanasis Antetokounmpo (SF)

Ques Fri Hamstring - 11 / 04 / 24

Boston

Kristaps Porzingis (PF)

Prob Mon Leg - 11 / 06 / 24

Luke Kornet (C)

Ques Thurs Wrist - 30 / 05 / 24

Jrue Holiday (PG)

Prob Mon Illness - 26 / 05 / 24

Jrue Holiday (PG)

Prob Sun Illness - 25 / 05 / 24

Luke Kornet (C)

Prob Mon Wrist - 24 / 05 / 24

Xavier Tillman (PF)

Ques Sat Personal - 20 / 05 / 24

Luke Kornet (C)

Prob Mon Calf - 12 / 05 / 24

Kristaps Porzingis (PF)

Prob Thur Calf - 29 / 04 / 24

Luke Kornet (C)

Prob Sat Calf - 20 / 04 / 24

Al Horford (C)

Prob Sun Toe - 12 / 04 / 24

Injuries

Milwaukee

player (position)	status		ats*current	o/u*	notes
Khris Middleton (SF)	Prob Thurs	Ankle - 01 / 05 / 24	1-1	1-1	+ -
Middleton is dealing with a right ankle sprain, but he is likely to participate in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference first round against the Pacers.
Patrick Beverley (PG)	Prob Thurs	Oblique - 01 / 05 / 24	1-1	1-1	+ -
Beverley is laid up with a right oblique muscle strain, but it is forecasted that he will face the Pacers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference first round.
Khris Middleton (SF)	Prob Tues	Ankle - 29 / 04 / 24	1-1	1-1	+ -
Middleton is dealing with a right ankle sprain, but he is likely to participate in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference first round against the Pacers.
Patrick Beverley (PG)	Prob Tues	Oblique - 29 / 04 / 24	1-1	1-1	+ -
Beverley is laid up with a right oblique muscle strain, but it is forecasted that he will face the Pacers in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference first round.
Khris Middleton (SF)	Prob Sun	Ankle - 27 / 04 / 24	2-1	2-1	+ -
Middleton is tending to a right ankle sprain, but it is not expected to impact his status for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference first round against the Pacers.
Khris Middleton (SF)	Prob Fri	Ankle - 25 / 04 / 24	2-2	3-1	+ -
Middleton is tending to a right ankle sprain, but he is likely to partake in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference first round versus the Pacers.
Chris Livingston (SF)	Ques Thurs	Illness - 25 / 04 / 24	2-2	3-1	+ -
Livingston is ailing from an illness, and it is unclear if he will suit up against the Pacers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference first round.
Thanasis Antetokounmpo (SF)	Prob Sun	Hamstring - 13 / 04 / 24	3-4	4-3	+ -
Antetokounmpo is dealing with left hamstring soreness, but it is anticipated that he will face the Magic on Sunday.
MarJon Beauchamp (SF)	Prob Sun	Ankle - 13 / 04 / 24	3-4	4-3	+ -
Beauchamp is tending to a left ankle sprain, but he is likely to take part in Sunday's tilt with the Magic.
Thanasis Antetokounmpo (SF)	Ques Fri	Hamstring - 11 / 04 / 24	4-4	5-3	+ -
Antetokounmpo is nursing left hamstring soreness, and his availability versus the Thunder on Friday is undetermined.

Boston

player (position)	status		ats*current	o/u*	notes
Kristaps Porzingis (PF)	Prob Mon	Leg - 11 / 06 / 24	1-1	0-3	+ -
Porzingis is nursing a lower leg injury, but he is expected to be on court against the Mavericks on Monday in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
Luke Kornet (C)	Ques Thurs	Wrist - 30 / 05 / 24	2-2	0-5	+ -
Kornet is dealing with a left wrist sprain injury, and it is undetermined if he will be active in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Mavericks on Thursday.
Jrue Holiday (PG)	Prob Mon	Illness - 26 / 05 / 24	3-3	2-5	+ -
Holiday is ailing from illness, but he is projected to be on court against the Pacers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Jrue Holiday (PG)	Prob Sun	Illness - 25 / 05 / 24	3-3	2-5	+ -
Holiday is dealing with a non-COVID illness, but he is likely to be on court against the Pacers on Sunday.
Luke Kornet (C)	Prob Mon	Wrist - 24 / 05 / 24	3-3	2-5	+ -
Kornet is dealing with a left wrist sprain injury, but he is expected to play against the Pacers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Xavier Tillman (PF)	Ques Sat	Personal - 20 / 05 / 24	3-5	4-5	+ -
Tillman has missed the last two game because of the personal reasons, and it is unclear if he will play Saturday against the Pacers in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Luke Kornet (C)	Prob Mon	Calf - 12 / 05 / 24	4-7	5-7	+ -
Kornet has a right calf injury, but he is expected to feature in the lineup against the Cavaliers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Kristaps Porzingis (PF)	Prob Thur	Calf - 29 / 04 / 24	8-7	7-9	+ -
Porzingis is dealing with a right calf strain, and he is expected to play in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Mavericks on Thursday.
Luke Kornet (C)	Prob Sat	Calf - 20 / 04 / 24	9-8	9-10	+ -
Kornet has been out of commission with a right calf strain, but he is expected to return to the court for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference first round versus the Heat.
Al Horford (C)	Prob Sun	Toe - 12 / 04 / 24	10-9	11-10	+ -
Horford has a left big toe sprain, but he is expected to line up for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first round.