Milwaukee Bucks: Previewing potential playoff matchup versus Charlotte Hornets

Following a six-game road swing, the Milwaukee Bucks will finally return home and play their first game at Fiserv Forum since March 27.

It will be a quick visit home to host the Charlotte Hornets before hitting the road once again for a three-game trip. Charlotte has taken a surprising leap in the Eastern Conference standings this season, currently occupying the East’s fourth seed with a 26-24 record, just one slot behind the Bucks at 32-19.

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While each team’s place in the standings currently does not align for that to happen, the standings in this conference are unpredictable as ever. Charlotte sits at fourth in the standings, but that is prone to change drastically with each passing game as teams four-through-nine are separated by just three games in total.

While that sets the stage for an unpredictable finish as the regular season begins winding down, it is feasible to believe that these two teams could come face to face in the postseason.

While we’ll wait to see that unfold, here are three things to keep in mind as these two teams face off tonight in a potential preview of the playoffs.

Long distance shooting will play a big factor for the Milwaukee Bucks versus the Charlotte Hornets

Hitting 39.2 percent of their shots from 3-point territory this season, the Bucks are one of the best teams in the association at knocking down the long ball. The problem for Milwaukee is not shooting triples, but stopping their opponents from knocking them down consistently.

The Bucks’ opponents are hitting 37.6 percent of their shots from behind the arc this season, the seventh-worst mark in the association. Opposing teams continue to exploit Milwaukee’s most prominent flaw in the Mike Budenholzer era, just as the Hornets did earlier in their first meeting of the season with the Bucks.

Charlotte shot 21-of-44 (47.7 percent) from deep in that matchup, burying the Bucks with a barrage of triples. Currently boasting the eighth-best 3-point percentage in the league at 37.9 percent, this is a team that could give Milwaukee trouble if they find any rhythm from the outside. Keeping that shooting at bay so history does not repeat itself will be pivotal in tonight’s matchup and anything potentially further down the road.

Surprisingly, the Hornets have hit a slump as are shooting just 31.1 percent from the perimeter in their last three contests. Still, teams tend to get hot hand shooting the ball against the Bucks, and that will certainly be something to watch for against these much-improved Hornets.