The Milwaukee Bucks clinched the best record in the NBA with a 105-92 win over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, while the Denver Nuggets clinched the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with the Grizzlies’ 138-131 overtime loss to the Pelicans. Here’s what you need to know:
- The Bucks boast a 58-22 record this season, the best in the league, with two regular-season games remaining.
- The Nuggets (52-27) will finish atop the Western Conference for the first time in franchise history.
- Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo and Denver’s Nikola Jokić make up two of three MVP favorites this season, along with the 76ers’ Joel Embiid.
The road goes through Milwaukee. pic.twitter.com/WRB4x2bpqc
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) April 6, 2023
Your Denver Nuggets have clinched first place in the West for the first time in franchise history 🤝 pic.twitter.com/BeBhtd5m9X
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) April 6, 2023
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
How Milwaukee got here
After starting the season with a nine-game winning streak, the Bucks struggled for the next two months and put together a 13-12 record in their next 25 games. Once they hit Jan. 1 though, things started to get better and the team really hit another level when Khris Middleton got back on the floor on Jan. 23. With Middleton in the fold, the Bucks won 16 straight games and eventually took over the top spot in the East on Feb. 27. They’ve held onto it since that date and have now clinched the NBA’s best record for the season. — Nehm
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What this means for the Bucks
In coach Mike Budenholzer’s first two seasons in Milwaukee, Antetokounmpo won NBA MVP honors and the Bucks posted the NBA’s best record, but the Bucks came up short of their ultimate goal of winning a championship. In Budenholzer’s third season, the Bucks experimented more in the regular season and came away with the no. 3 seed heading into the playoffs, but ultimately won the franchise’s first NBA title since 1971.
They didn’t care about the No. 1 seed last season and ultimately lost a Game 7 in Boston in the second round. They took a 3-2 lead in that series and could have closed out the series in Game 6 in Milwaukee, so they had an opportunity to win at home, but hosting Game 7s, if necessary, throughout the postseason will be a nice bonus this time around. — Nehm
What they’re saying
“It’s just a credit to the players. The players have really stepped up. I think they’ve embraced the challenge, night in and night out,” Budenholzer said of the accomplishment after Wednesday’s game. “To have the best record, it is something that matters and it is important, but I think being our best each day and every night is what we talk about the most. Now, we get to take a breath…the guys have earned it.”
Backstory
With Antetokounmpo out due to right knee soreness, Milwaukee forward Bobby Portis posted a game-high 27 points and 13 rebounds on 6-of-9 shooting from 3-point range. Brook Lopez added 26 points and seven rebounds of his own for the Bucks. Forward Khris Middleton played just eight minutes before exiting for the remainder of the game with soreness in his right knee.
Nikola Vucevic paced the Bulls with 21 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan combined for just 21 points, shooting 8-for-29 from the field and 1-of-9 from 3 as a duo.
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Although the Nuggets didn’t suit up Wednesday night, the Pelicans secured the top seed in the West for Denver by defeating the Grizzlies. Herb Jones (35), CJ McCollum (31) and Trey Murphy III (30) combined to score 96 of New Orleans’ 138 points in the victory.
Jokić and the Nuggets are on the road Thursday night to take on the Phoenix Suns, while Milwaukee hosts Memphis on Friday night.
Required reading
- Giannis Antetokounmpo shakes Bucks out of late-season doldrums in win over Wizards
- NBA Power Rankings: Celtics on top; Lakers rise; measuring success for all 30 teams
- How the Bucks could change for a Celtics playoff matchup
(Photo: AAron Ontiveroz / MediaNews Group / The Denver Post via Getty Images)