4 Former Bucks Milwaukee might have to face in the playoffs
By Tyler Watts
The Milwaukee Bucks are back atop the Eastern Conference and are the favorites to win the championship. Giannis Antetokounmpo is playing like the MVP and averaging over 30 points per game for the first time in his NBA career. Getting and staying healthy is the top priority as the Bucks look for their second championship in three years.
Getting back to the playoffs for the seventh straight year means facing plenty of familiar foes, including some that used to play in the Cream City. Which of their former players could be foes in the 2023 NBA Playoffs?
For the sake of this article, the focus is just on the Eastern Conference. The Bucks can only face one team from the Western Conference, and it is a wide-open race. There are just too many options to narrow down for who comes out of the opposite conference, so here are four they could face in the East. Here are 4 former Bucks that could face their old team in the NBA Playoffs.
4 Former Bucks Milwaukee might have to face in the playoffs: 4. Robin Lopez, Cleveland Cavaliers
Robin joined his twin brother Brook in Milwaukee for the 2019-2020 season. Brook was the starting center with Robin backing up. RoLo averaged 5.4 points and 2.4 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per game during his lone season with the Bucks. He traveled to the bubble but only played in the first three playoff games before being a DNP-CD for the remainder of the postseason.
In the 2020 offseason, Robin signed with the Washington Wizards, and he is now on his third different team after signing with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the summer of 2022. Lopez is more of an emergency big man that is likely to be outside the Cavs’ playoff rotation.
How the Bucks can face the Cavaliers in the NBA Playoffs:
Cleveland is on pace to finish as the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference, and they would play the Bucks if both teams win their first-round series. Milwaukee will face the winner of the third and final Play-In Tournament game, and the Cavaliers are set to take on the Knicks in the opening round. Both the Bucks and Cavs will be heavily favored to win their first series and advance to play each other in round two.