3 things to watch for as Milwaukee Bucks host P.J. Tucker, Miami Heat

Can the Milwaukee Bucks take advantage against a depleted, tired Miami Heat team?

Most of you should know the saying in sports that you have to play who’s in front of you. The Heat got the benefit of playing the Bucks at less than one hundred percent in their first matchup and now the Bucks will have a chance to do the same.

Nothing can be taken away from either matchup in terms of how these teams will look in a playoff series since we simply haven’t seen both teams at full health against one another yet. It’s also early December and very few teams will look the same now as they will once the playoffs begin.

That being said, the Bucks can take advantage of what is likely a schedule loss for the Heat on a back-to-back and already missing key bodies. Any time you can hand a conference rival a loss is a good thing, especially in a tight race in the Eastern Conference at the moment. Whether Antetokounmpo plays or not, this should be considered a winnable game for the defending champs.

I’m also looking out to see if Wesley Matthews will get to play right away for the Bucks as DeMarcus Cousins did. It’s not the primary storyline for this one, but it’s another layer of intrigue that can be added for a game around the first quarter mark of the NBA season.

Matthews’ signing was certainly a surprise and made fans wonder how he’ll fit in given that they have decent depth on the wing, but it could be an indictment to how Jordan Nwora and Rodney Hood have yet to take hold of a regular rotation spot yet.

The Bucks will face the Heat again in less than five days, on the road, so they will certainly have even more familiarity with them than they already do.