It's playoff time, Milwaukee!
The Bucks and Indiana Pacers are set to meet in the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, beginning Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. This marks the second consecutive year that the Central Divison teams meet up in the playoffs, with the Pacers winning the series in six games, capitalizing on injuries to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. That was a whole year ago, though, so let's see how things look this time around:
In the regular season, the Bucks won the season series with Indiana, 3-1. Milwaukee secured victories on November 22nd (129–117), New Year's Eve (120–112), and most recently on March 15th (126–119). The Pacers' only win came on March 11, when Tyrese Haliburton converted a heartbreaker of a four-point play in the final seconds to slip past the Bucks, 115–114.
The Bucks enter the series without Lillard, who has been sidelined since March 18th due to a blood clot in his right calf. However, miraculously, he has been cleared to resume basketball activities as of Thursday, and is no longer on blood-thinning medication, according to Shams Charania of ESPN. While he will miss Game 1, there is optimism he could return later in the series. He will definitely be needed if Milwaukee wants to go deep in the playoffs this time around.
Giannis remains the focal point for Milwaukee, averaging 30 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 7.5 assists in four games against Indiana this season. The Bucks also benefit from contributions by Brook Lopez and the recent return of Bobby Portis, who provide interior defense and scoring. Bobby, of course, brings the x-factor of being the unoffiical mayor of Milwaukee, firing up crowds at Fiserv Forum just about every time he steps on the floor.
The Pacers, led by Oshkosh native Haliburton and Pascal Siakam, finished the regular season strong, winning 14 of their final 17 games to secure the four seed. Haliburton averaged 20.6 points and 11 assists over the final 21 games, shooting 53.3% from the field and 43.9% from three-point range.
Indiana's depth includes Myles Turner, Aaron Nesmith, and Andrew Nembhard in the starting lineup, with Benedict Mathurin and T.J. McConnell providing scoring off the bench.
Should we be optimistic? Of course. That being said, the Bucks come in as of Thursday as +175 underdogs to win game one, according to Potawatomi Sportsbook. Nevertheless, it's always Bucks in six.
Bucks/Pacers Round 1 schedule:
- Game one: Saturday, April 19th at Indiana - 12 p.m., ESPN
- Game two: Tuesday, April 22nd at Indiana - 6 p.m., NBA TV
- Game three: Friday, April 25th in Milwaukee, 7 p.m. - ESPNU and NBA TV
- Game four: Sunday, April 27th in Milwaukee, 8:30 p.m., TNT
- Game five (if necessary): Tuesday, April 29th at Indiana, time and network TBD
- Game six (if necessary): Friday, May 2nd in Milwaukee, time and network TBD
- Game seven (if necessary): Sunday, May 4th at Indiana, time and network TBD
Tickets to the home games are available here via Ticketmaster.
