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Free NBA Picks Milwaukee Bucks: Season-Long Handicapping and Specialization 11/9/2022

by Spencer Toth - 11/9/2022

Milwaukee Bucks daily betting predictions Jrue Holiday

This season, I will be breaking down every Milwaukee Bucks game and giving my best bets for the contests. While it may not always favor the Bucks, using in-depth knowledge on both the Bucks, and the entire NBA, we will be able to churn a consistent profit throughout the season.

Doc’s Sports offers NBA expert picks for every game on our NBA predictions page.

On Monday the Bucks took their first loss of the season, getting blown out by the Hawks, who were missing Trae Young, by a score of 117-98. Dejounte Murray led the way, putting up 25 points, while role player AJ Griffin dropped 24, going 10/16 from the floor. From a betting perspective, we went 1-1. We correctly picked the Hawks would pick up the win in the +130 underdog role, calling the Bucks first loss of the season. Unfortunately, Brook Lopez was unable to grab enough boards, costing us an impressive perfect night.

Attention shifts to the Thunder, as Milwaukee travels to Oklahoma City Wednesday night. The two teams met last Saturday in Milwaukee, and the Bucks came out on top by a score of 108-94. While the Thunder were expected to be taking for Wemba, they have gotten off to a decent start, going 4-6 in the first 10 games. A visit from the 9-1 Bucks will not be an easy contest, but they are hoping to use home court to their advantage and shock the Bucks.

The Thunder are led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is having a career year, putting up 30.8 PPG to start the season. Gilgeous-Alexander is a dynamic point guard and is the sole reason the Thunder are winning games. The 24-year-old Canadian is the only member of the team averaging more than 13 PPG, and it cannot be emphasized enough the role Gilgeous-Alexander plays for the Thunder.

Unfortunately, the Bucks have one of the top defensive guards in the league, Jrue Holiday. Considering the one-dimensional nature of the Thunder’s offense, Holiday is the perfect defender to lock down Gilgeous-Alexander. In their first matchup, Holiday held Gilgeous-Alexander to 18 points, his lowest total of the year. Tonight, I expect Holiday to be able to put in the same shift on the defensive end and lock up Gilgeous-Alexander once again.

Elsewhere on the court, the Thunder struggle to put up points. Low-caliber NBA players like Josh Giddey and Luguentz Dort are not good enough to warrant the starter minutes they are receiving. The lack of depth and star talent forces the Thunder to rely on Gilgeous-Alexander to put up monster performances, night in and night out.

On the other side of the court, the Milwaukee Bucks are coming off their first loss of the season and will certainly be looking to beat up on the Thunder tonight. Giannis Antetokounmpo is a tier above the entire Thunder roster and will be impossible to contain. When these two teams last met, Antetokounmpo was injured, and the Bucks still had no problem pulling out the victory. Now that he is back on the court, I expected the spread to be in double digits. However, it sits at a measly 5.5 points. The advantages the Bucks have up and down the court are insurmountable, and I expect a 20+ point drubbing to go down in OKC.

I know the Thunder have home court advantage. However, when the skill gap is as wide as this, I have no choice but to lay the points with the road favorites. Brook Lopez and Antetokounmpo will be able to dominate the paint, Holiday will be able to freely continue his torrid start to the season, and the Bucks will be emptying out their bench midway through the 4th quarter in a blowout.

The first, and only, bet of the night is Bucks -5.5. The Bucks are better in almost every position. And unless Gilgeous-Alexander can pull a rabbit out of the hat and get the best of Holiday, the Bucks will be up by double digits for the entire game. Unless there are some surprise injuries baked into the line, I cannot see the Thunder being able to keep the game close.

Pick: Milwaukee Bucks (-5.5) 4 Units

2022 Season record:

ML Record: 2-0

Spread Record: 2-2

Total Record: 1-2

Player Props Record: 2-4

Total: 7-8

Up 2.1 Units ($210)

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