Portland Trail Blazers (23-34) vs Milwaukee Bucks (35-22)

The good news: the Portland Trail Blazers have won two in a row! The bad news: the schedule gets really brutal for a while, and it starts with a road game against the Milwaukee Bucks. When these two teams met at Moda a bit over a week ago, the Bucks won in dominating fashion by a score of 137-108.

The Bucks have won four out of their last five games, but that one loss was last time out against the Phoenix Suns. Milwaukee will surely be on guard against a second loss in a row as they look to move up the standings in the East.

Monday, February 14- 5:00 p.m. PT
How to watch on TV: Root Sports NW, NBA League Pass
Blazers injuries: Damian Lillard (out), Nassir Little (out), Keon Johnson (out), Eric Bledsoe (out), Didi Louzada (out), Joe Ingles (out), Dennis Smith Jr. (out)
Bucks injuries: Brook Lopez (out), George Hill (out), Pat Connaughton (out), Giannis Antetokounmpo (doubtful)
SBN Affiliate: Brew Hoop

What To Watch For

• Lots of points from the Bucks starters. Against the Los Angeles Lakers last Thursday, the starting five for the Bucks scored a staggering 115 points. The previous Sunday the Bucks starters scored 114 against the Los Angeles Clippers. In both cases, all five starters were in double figures. These are crazy numbers. In fact, the entire Blazers team hasn’t scored 114 points in over seven games.
• Josh Hart. What a way to make a first impression. In his debut for the Blazers, Hart was everything the Blazers could ask for. He shot 58.3% from the field, 50% from deep, poured in 23 points, and played some defense like we haven’t seen too often from the home team around here. Perhaps more importantly for Blazers fans right now, he was just fun to watch. In spite of wins against the Knicks and Lakers, odds are that the Blazers will lose a lot of games over the rest of the season. Odds are also very good that Josh Hart will bring it on both ends of the court, and Blazers fans will love it.

Note: It has been announced since the preview was written that Giannis Antetokounmpo is doubtful to play with a left ankle problem.

• Beware the wrath of Giannis. Against Phoenix, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 18 points. When was the most recent time Giannis previously scored less that 20 points? December 8th. The last time he scored less than 20 two games in a row? We have to got back to March of 2021. Will Giannis score more than 20 against the Blazers? Yes. Yes he will.

What Others Are Saying

Are the fourth-place-in-the-East Bucks a true contender? Gerard Samillano of Clutch Points explains why the Bucks are back on track.

A litany of injuries hampered the Bucks early in the season. With Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton coming straight from the Olympics and the Finals, it was no wonder they struggled early on. However, after some adjustments, Antetokounmpo and co. are back to the dominant team that is the clear-cut favorite to make it out of the Eastern Conference.

Blazers fans looking to tune in and catch our old friend Pat Connaughton will be disappointed after he broke his shooting hand against Phoenix on Thursday. Mitchell Maurer of Brew Hoop has the details.

With the All Star break still over a week away, Connaughton can be expected to miss anywhere between 10-20 games at this point, meaning he could return shortly before the playoffs. But this is before any additional details are known about the injury. Just because we know where it is doesn’t mean we know how bad it is, or how the recovery will go. The Milwaukee Bucks have a world-class medical staff, so here’s hoping that Pat gets the right solution and recovers fully. Get well soon, Pat, the Bucks need you!

Learn about Valerie Daniels-Carter, part of an investment group that purchased a minority stake in the Bucks, from Martenzie Johnson of The Undefeated.

That love of sports has followed Daniels-Carter – one of just three Black female minority owners in the NBA, along with actress Jada Pinkett Smith (Philadelphia 76ers) and BET co-founder Sheila Johnson (Washington Wizards) – throughout her life. She played collegiate basketball at the historically Black Lincoln University, had an offer to play for the Milwaukee Does of the short-lived Women’s Professional Basketball League, and, in 2011, was elected to the board of directors for the Green Bay Packers.