“And now for the Main Event of the evening!”
Looks like there’s room for two magnanimous premieres for nationwide blockbusters on Thursday night. Star Wars is dropping in theaters, obviously, but before that, another long-awaited duel between two elite factions at the top of their game takes place tonight. The two best teams in the NBA compete for bragging rights on Thursday night as the 24-4 Los Angeles Lakers compete in their second-straight road game against an Eastern conference adversary, this time traveling a little up north to face that other 24-4 powerhouse in the Milwaukee Bucks live on TNT at 8 p.m. EST.
Barring a shocking home loss to a Mavericks team that was without, and will be without, their star player for what sounds like a period of multiple weeks on Monday night, the Bucks (more specifically Giannis Antetokounmpo) have looked the part of the most menacing team in the league. It’s apples to oranges when trying to find comparisons or superiorities with all the other teams in the East just a full month and some change into the 2019 campaign.
The Greek Freek is the runaway MVP favorite and possible lock already in the month of December, posting up some astronomical numbers of 31.7 points a game, 12.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists. We’ve never seen a player dominate at this magnitude and it’s almost an impending reality that the 2018-19 league MVP will finish this season averaging double-doubles while scoring 30 points (or more) a game, something seldom accomplished.
And of course, the best players make their teammates better in their quest to make the team the best in the land, and Antetokounmpo has accomplished that in multitudes. Milwaukee leads the league in scoring differential, is tied for first in total defensive rating and is second behind the Mavericks in overall offensive rating.
Who is second in those statistical rankings, you might ask? Look no further in the team that balls out in Tinseltown on a nightly basis. The Los Angeles Lakers may have lost their first game in over a month while undermanned without Anthony Davis (coincidentally, one night after the Bucks had their 18-game winning streak snapped) on Tuesday against the Pacers, but that hasn’t stopped this train from rolling all season.
The Lakers are tied for first with the Bucks in the overall team aspect of defensive rating, is only a spot behind the Lakers with the second-best winning/scoring margin in the NBA, and though they fall three spots lower than the Bucks in total offensive rating as a team, it’s yet to be determined just how tight the equally-gifted and dynamic frontcourts for both teams battle all night.
There really isn’t much else to be said about this one, except to just look at this matchup and enjoy the show. The two best teams in the league, and the two best players in the league in LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo face-off on primetime television for the world to see. What more could you ask for?
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