Milwaukee Bucks vs. Brooklyn Nets Predictions, Picks, Odds

Michael Crosson Sports Betting Expert

4 minute read

Nationally televised NBA action will resume on Friday night with a rematch of last year’s thrilling Eastern Conference Semi-Finals between the Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets. Coverage begins from Barclays Center at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

SCORE PREDICTION

Bucks 116, Nets 113

BEST BETS

MILWAUKEE BUCKS VS. BROOKLYN NETS PREDICTIONS

After last year’s triumphant NBA title run, the Bucks stumbled out to a surprisingly poor start to the new season, as the Bucks opened with a lackluster 6-8 SU and ATS skid – despite getting tagged as favorites in ten of those contests.

The Bucks have played much better since their opening stretch though, considering Milwaukee enters Friday riding a sturdy 17-7 SU run – yet, sit just 11-13 ATS across that timeframe.

On the other hand, Brooklyn also posted a surprisingly slow start to the season, as the Nets kicked things off with a lackluster 7-4 SU and 5-6 ATS skid – with all four of those SU losses coming in matchups they were favored in.

The Nets have settled into a similarly uneasy rhythm since their opening stretch though, considering Brooklyn enters Friday sitting at 17-8 SU and 10-15 ATS across the last 25 games – which ranks them 5th in the league SU with an overall record of 24-12 – yet 28th ATS with a record of 15-21.

I’ll take the points with Milwaukee here, as prior to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s latest illness, the Bucks were 6-0 SU and 5-1 ATS in their last six games, while averaging 124 PPG across that span – and if Antetokounmpo returns to action on Friday night, Brooklyn could be running into a buzzsaw with Kyrie Irving unavailable at home.

BOSTON CELTICS VS. NEW YORK KNICKS BETTING ODDS

More Odds | Futures Odds

MILWAUKEE BUCKS VS. BROOKLYN NETS BETTING RESOURCES

• Matchup: Central vs. Atlantic
• Date: Friday, January 7, 2022
• Venue: Barclays Center
• Location: Brooklyn, New York
• TV-Time: ESPN - 7:30 p.m. ET
• Injury Report

MILWAUKEE BUCKS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 25-15
• ATS: 18-22
• O/U: 18-22

After finishing with the best record in the East in two of the last three years, Milwaukee’s rough start was incredibly surprising, considering the Bucks’ compiled a record of 162-65 SU across the previous three regular seasons – and then started this season just 6-8 SU.

Since mid-November though, Milwaukee has played excellent basketball when healthy, considering the Bucks are 17-7 SU across their latest 25-game stretch – with five of those losses coming in the absence of Antetokounmpo.

BROOKLYN NETS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 24-12
• ATS: 15-21
• O/U: 17-19

After stumbling out to a surprisingly pedestrian start to the season (7-4 SU, 5-6 ATS), Brooklyn quickly settled into a rhythm during the early stages of November, as the Nets now boast an impressive record of 23-11 SU – yet still rank near the bottom of the barrel ATS at 15-19.

This year’s Nets squad is far more balanced than the offensively reliant units we’ve seen in the past though, considering Brooklyn ranks just 10th in scoring and 12th in offensive efficiency (110.8 PPG, 1.074 OE) – yet rank 7th in defensive efficiency and 2nd in opponent effective field-goal percentage (1.046 DE, 49.5% EFG).

MILWAUKEE BUCKS VS. BROOKLYN NETS HEAD-TO-HEAD

The Bucks won two-of-three regular-season matchups against Brooklyn last year, with all three of those events soaring over the total for Friday’s affair at an average of 240.3 PPG.

These teams also met up in last year’s Eastern Conference Semi-Finals, resulting in a highly competitive seven-game series victory for Milwaukee – which also took place in the absence of Irving.

The most recent matchup between these teams took place on opening night of this season though, which resulted in another high-scoring victory for the Bucks (127-104).

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH

• MIL: Giannis Antetokounmpo - PF (27.9 PPG, 11.9 REB, 5.9 AST)
• MIL: Khris Middleton - SG (18.5 PPG, 5.3 REB, 4.9 AST)
• BKN: Kevin Durant - SF (30 PPG, 7.7 REB, 5.7 AST)
• BKN: James Harden - PG (22.5 PPG, 8.1 REB, 9.8 AST)

MILWAUKEE BUCKS VS. BROOKLYN NETS BETTING CONCLUSION

After snapping a three-game losing streak in Indiana on Wednesday night, the Nets enter Friday’s contest as narrow home favorites over the visiting Bucks – marking the first time Milwaukee has been an underdog since December 18th.

I’ll take the points with Milwaukee here, as the Nets are 1-3 SU and 0-4 ATS across their last four games, having scored 104 PTS or less in two of those matchups (112.7 PPG) – which sets the stage for tough sledding against a Bucks squad averaging 119 PPG across their current 6-2 SU and 5-3 ATS run.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS VS. BROOKLYN NETS BETTING TRENDS

• The Bucks are 4-1 ATS in their last five matchups against Brooklyn.
• The total has gone UNDER in eight of the last ten matchups between Brooklyn and Milwaukee.
• The total has gone OVER in five of the last six Bucks' games.
• The Nets are 1-4 ATS in their last five games.

Michael Crosson

Michael Crosson began his time at VegasInsider as a freelance NBA writer back in 2019 while he continued to study Psychology and Biology at James Madison University. Following his graduation in 2021, Michael joined the team full-time, and he's been with VI ever since. Michael still writes NBA, NFL, and MLB for VI, as well as gambling industry news. He's also become a crucial part of our editorial production team. More from Michael Crosson