1. LA Clippers
The team that poses the greatest threat to Milwaukee this coming season for the NBA title has to be the LA Clippers.
Though Philly may be a bigger hurdle given that they’re the clear challenger the Milwaukee Bucks should face in the East this season, the Clippers get the edge in these rankings because they are the clear favorite to win it all.
The Clippers may face some steep competition in a pretty loaded Western Conference. However, they’re the team that best checks all of the boxes that you’d want a potential title favorite to check.
At the top of their roster, the Clippers managed to add both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard this summer. Both are among the best 10 or 12 players in the NBA today.
As Bucks fans are well aware, Leonard was the key player who turned the Eastern Conference Finals around for the Toronto Raptors in May.
Leonard is the single best player in the league right now at matching up with Giannis Antetokounmpo. His one-on-one defending is virtually unmatched by anyone else around the league. Even when he’s off the primary ball-handler, he’s a constant threat to break up offensive possessions because of his athleticism, instincts and reach. He’s the best defender in the NBA, and has been for several seasons running.
On the other end, Leonard put on one of the best performances of all-time in the playoffs last Spring. Excepting his passing, which remains a tad behind that of Antetokounmpo (arguably) and LeBron James, he’s about as good or better at every other facet of the game on that end as any player in the league.
What makes the Clippers such a dangerous match-up for Milwaukee, though, isn’t just Kawhi Leonard. It’s that the Clippers can throw another top-12 player in the NBA at him, who possesses similar elite skills, in Paul George.
Antetokounmpo, in a hypothetical Finals match-up, will find himself guarded at all times by one of George or Leonard if they’re healthy. Even if he takes another leap forward in his game this season, that’s an extremely daunting task for any player, and team, to go up against and prosper in a seven-game series.
The Clippers also boast what might be the best supporting cast in the NBA.
At guard, they have Patrick Beverley, several time Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams, and Landry Shamet. All have skills that should work well as a complement to George and Leonard’s skills.
In the front court, they boast Maurice Harkless, Ivica Zubac, JaMychal Green, and Montrezl Harrell. Harrell, in particular, is one of the best undersized bigs in the league. He may be the third best player on this roster, and is a really dynamic player.
Two things pose a potential threat to derail this team.
The first is the health of George and Leonard. It’s unclear when George will be returning from the injuries he sustained last season, and Leonard does not have a glowing injury history either. The team will have to be careful managing their minutes and usage during the regular season so they’re healthy come playoff time.
The other thing that could harm their chances this season is that their core will be playing together for the first time. It’s unclear when those top-two guys will finally have time on the court together. Building up a chemistry and understanding takes time, no matter how talented the players involved are. Just ask the Big Three era Miami Heat how that worked their first season together. Just because they have two top-10 players on their team doesn’t necessarily mean that everything will click right away.
Beyond those concerns, though, this team is as well-rounded as you can ask for. Given the personnel they have, they’re well-suited to try to replicate and expand on what Toronto was able to do to Milwaukee during the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Bucks are facing a tough road to win it all, but the Clippers are the team that pose the greatest threat to them.
We’ll have to wait and see if the Milwaukee Bucks can develop further this regular season, and navigate past the various challengers to claim the franchise’s second NBA championship.