- Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard join forces to create a new powerhouse in the East
- Bucks are heavy favorites to win the 2024 NBA championship
- Lakers, Celtics, and Heat will give the Bucks some major problems
In the NBA, star power is everything and it’s almost impossible for a team to win a title if they don’t have at least one or two superstars leading the way. In Milwaukee, they have experienced this first-hand under the reign of Giannis Antetokounmpo, who led them to a championship in 2021. After a few down years, the window was thought to be closing for the Bucks but they swung it wide open with the trade for Damian Lillard this summer.
Now, with Giannis and Lillard in tow, the Bucks are in a good position to not only win the East but be in contention for multiple championships over the next five or more years. Together, Giannis, Lillard, Khris Middleton, and Brook Lopez make a seamless fit and fans are struggling to imagine a world where they fail to win the 2024 NBA championship. In the NBA, however, success is never a guarantee, and as strong as the Bucks look now, there are still other teams out there who could spoil this moment for the Bucks and their fans. Besides the reigning NBA champions in Denver, there are three teams who stand out as the biggest challengers for this new superteam: the Celtics, Lakers, and Miami Heat.
Boston Celtics
During the 2022-23 campaign, we saw the Celtics prosper with Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Joe Mazzula’s high-volume offense. For much of the season, they held the NBA’s best record and had a stretch where they were playing the best offense anyone had seen in decades. They did eventually cool off as the season progressed, but the Celtics showed their resolve in the playoffs when they once again made a run to the Conference Finals.
Impressively, the Celtics almost made basketball history by coming back from down 3-0 against the Heat, but they were unable to close the deal in the end. Coming into this season, the Bucks definitely have more star power, but the Cs are a much deeper and more well-rounded team overall with guys like Kristaps Porzingis, Robert Williams III, and Derrick White filling out the supporting cast.
In a seven-game series, it would truly be a toss-up between the new-look Bucks and modern Celtics, but you can’t say that Boston wouldn’t have a chance to win given their talent and overall experience playing together. As one of the few teams who could match the Bucks offensively, the Cs should not be taken lightly by Giannis and the crew this upcoming season.
Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers were a strange enigma last season. For the first half of the season, they were a border-line lottery team with Russell Westbrook and most fans had given up hope of a playoff run before Christmas Day. Miraculously, the Lakers ended up proving everyone wrong by making a series of mid-season trades that completely changed the team’s dynamic. As one of the best duos in basketball, it was LeBron James and Anthony Davis who led the comeback and they are expected to pick up right where they left off. At 38 years old, LeBron was still among the league’s top performers with season averages of 28.9 points and 6.8 assists per game, but he and Davis will have much more help for this new season and they can thrive with good health on their side.
Post-deadline, after acquiring D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt, and former Wizards lottery pick Rui Hachimura, the Lakers got a lot better on both ends of the floor and they finished the season by not just making the playoffs, but winning their first two series against the Grizzlies and Warriors. In the summer, they followed up on those moves by getting deeper with Taureen Prince, Cam Reddish, and Gabe Vincent.
Against Giannis and Lillard in 2023, the Lakers would certainly have their hands full on defense but they are one of the few teams equipped to handle the superstar duo, and plenty of fans are convinced they are ready to take the next step. With superior size, strength, and all-around chemistry, the Lakers are primed to pose a major threat to the Bucks and you shouldn’t be surprised if they come out on top in a potential Finals series.
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat may have lost the Damian Lillard sweepstakes, but they are still a team to fear in the NBA. During the 2022-23 campaign, we saw the Heat struggle all year long before pulling it together in the postseason and demonstrating their “Heat culture” for all the world to see. In the end, they were the last team standing in the Eastern Conference and were just a few wins away from winning the whole thing.
Having Lillard would have made them the overwhelming favorites in the East, but they can still win a lot of games without him. As we saw in the playoffs last season, the Heat have a way of getting the most out of their players, and the collective “buy-in” as a unit makes Miami a tough challenge for any competitor. For the Bucks specifically, the Heat have a pretty extensive history with them and it’s been Jimmy Butler and crew who have taken them down in two separate series now (2020 and 2023).
No matter how you feel about the Heat (or any of the other 29 teams), the NBA has taught us that winning a championship is more complicated than which team has the better stars. Obviously, the Bucks will be heavy favorites coming into the new season but it’s far from a given that they will be crowned NBA champions. In fact, the hard work has really just begun for the new-look Bucks, and you can bet that teams across the league will be ready to play their best every time they have a game against them.
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