2018 NBA Playoffs Preview: Boston Celtics vs Milwaukee Bucks, SWOT Analysis & Prediction

#3 Opportunities and threats

Boston Celtics

Tatum and Horford are 2 of the best 3-point shooters on the planet

In Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the Celtics have 2 of the best slashers in the conference. Setting them up in pick-and-roll scenarios with Horford/Morris will give them a double threat situation, which they can capitalize on for some easy buckets.

The Celtics will have a chance to dominate the Bucks inside the paint with their size advantage. In addition, they will look to also exploit the Bucks' poor 3-point defensive schemes, setting up Jayson Tatum, Marcus Morris and Al Horford beyond the arc with drive-and-kick plays from Rozier or Jaylen Brown.

The Celtics, due to the lack of a featured scorer, are liable to give up scoring runs to the Bucks without answers on the offensive end. They will also face great difficulty in making runs of their own. Thus, the Bucks have a much greater chance of causing big momentum shifts in close games, and Giannis' scoring threat will play a role in this as well.

Milwaukee Bucks

Khris Middleton will be a big factor

The Bucks have a bunch of nice slashers of their own, as Khris Middleton, Eric Bledsoe and Giannis are all capable of scoring off drives using their speed and athleticism (in the case of Giannis, his length and his ability to change hands on drives).

They are great at forcing turnovers from opposition teams, ranking 2nd in the league in opponent turnovers per game at 15.6. They also have the aforementioned 3 players to use these opportunities in transition to score on the fast break - Giannis ranks 2nd in the league in fast-break points per game.

Possibly the greatest threat the Bucks will face in the series is the possibility of their second-string getting outplayed by the Celtics' bench. Despite having a great starting five, the Bucks bench comprises of only Jabari Parker as a volume scorer. During the regular season, their bench had a net rating of -3.9 points per 100 possessions (22nd in the league) - a definite cause for concern against the deep Celtics.