NBA

NBA Playoff Race Update: Do the Los Angeles Lakers Stand a Chance of Making the Postseason?

Russell Peddle  —  @rustypedalbike Feb 22nd, 2019
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Eastern Conference - Sure Things

(1) Milwaukee Bucks (44-14, 100.0%)
(2) Toronto Raptors (43-16, 100.0%)
(3) Indiana Pacers (38-20, 100.0%)
(4) Philadelphia 76ers (38-21, 100.0%)
(5) Boston Celtics (37-22, 100.0%)

One of the best debates going in the NBA these days is about which team you think is coming out of the Eastern Conference this year. The Bucks, Raptors, Celtics, and 76ers all have a legitimate claim to the throne, but our algorithm likes Milwaukee head and shoulders above the rest. We give them a league-best 22.0% odds of winning the title, as compared to 12.4% for Toronto, 8.9% for Boston, and 5.5% for Philly.

No disrespect to the Pacers, who do have the third-best record in the conference, but since they lost Victor Oladipo for the season, they've kind of fallen out of the conversation. They're still making some noise, and they're a shoo-in to make the postseason, but they simply don't have the weapons to hang with the other four teams in this tier.

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