The Miami Heat are a great team, but they are going to have some stiff competition in the East this year. The years of the East being super weak are long gone.
There are some super talented teams near the top of the Eastern Conference. Since that is where the Miami Heat want to be, they are going to be fighting tooth and nail with the other great teams.
Miami should have the defensive abilities to go toe-to-toe with the best of the best, but that doesn’t mean other teams don’t have talent, too. In fact, one of their biggest rivals might have an even better defense than them.
The Milwaukee Bucks just won their first NBA championship in 50 years and are looking to make it two in a row. How do they stack up against the Miami Heat?
Miami Heat Eastern Conference roundup: Milwaukee Bucks latest news
The biggest news in the world of the Milwaukee Bucks is the best news possible – they are NBA Champions. Maybe it’s old news, but it is still the most relevant at this point in time.
Giannis Antetokounmpo finally won a championship for the city that drafted him. It’s impossible to hate a guy as genuine as he is, no matter how hard Miami Heat fans want to.
The Bucks will be going into this season looking to defend their title. They’ll be bringing back a very similar cast to the one they had last season.
The only recent news is that they gave their head coach, Mike Budenholzer, a three-year contract extension. He has gotten a lot of criticism over the years, but he finally got the job done last season.
Miami Heat Eastern Conference roundup: Milwaukee Bucks key additions
The Bucks made some minor moves this offseason, some tweaks around the edges, some would say. In total, they added four new faces to the roster.
They signed Semi Ojeleye, Rodney Hood, and George Hill in free agency. This will be Hill’s second stint with Milwaukee, while both Ojeleye and Hood will be in the city for the first time.
Milwaukee also added Grayson Allen to the roster this summer. They acquired him in a trade with the Memphis Grizzlies.
Lastly, the Bucks managed to bring back a couple of important pieces from last season’s roster. They re-signed both Bobby Portis and Thanasis Antetokounmpo to new deals.
Miami Heat Eastern Conference roundup: Milwaukee Bucks key subtractions
The Bucks’ biggest loss this offseason came at the hands of the Miami Heat. Miami signed PJ Tucker, who played a huge role in Milwaukee’s championship run last season, specifically on the defensive end.
Milwaukee also lost Bryne Forbes in free agency, as he chose to go back to San Antonio. This should be great news for Heat fans, as Forbes cooked them in Round 1 last year.
Lastly, the Bucks lost rookie Sam Merrill this summer. He was traded to the Grizzlies in the deal that saw Milwaukee acquire Allen.
Realistically, only the loss of Tucker should have a big impact on Milwaukee’s chances. Neither Merrill nor Forbes played particularly crucial roles for the Bucks.
Miami Heat Eastern Conference roundup: How the Miami Heat stack up vs the Milwaukee Bucks
The matchup of Miami vs Milwaukee has the potential to be one of the best rivalries in the NBA. After meeting in the playoffs for two years in a row, each team has taken one series.
If the two squads somehow play each other in this year’s playoffs, it would be must-see TV. Both franchises are hungry, talented, and want to go all the way this year.
As previously mentioned, the Bucks are one of the only teams who could have a better defense than the Heat. They are another team that prides themselves in their defense.
The trio of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, and Jrue Holiday might be the best defensive trio in the league. All three are elite on that end of the floor.
That being said, Miami stealing PJ Tucker away from the Bucks is huge for the Heat. Not only does that hurt Milwaukee’s defense, but it also improves Miami.
Tucker will be able to guard Middleton, therefore taking some of the defensive load off of Jimmy Butler. Tucker might even have some inside information on how to guard his former teammates.
The Heat are much better equipped to take on the Bucks this year. The addition of Kyle Lowry will make their offense much harder to deal with.
Since they just won the championship it’s hard not to give the edge to Milwaukee, but every game between these two teams will be extremely hard-fought. Make sure to tune in to every one of these matchups.