The Boston Celtics are favored to beat the Milwaukee Bucks in their second-round series. After sweeping the Brooklyn Nets in the first round, Boston has the edge over the defending champions in the upcoming 2022 NBA playoff matchup.

The Celtics have -200 odds at FanDuel Sportsbook to defeat the Bucks in the best-of-seven series. Milwaukee has +168 odds to defeat Boston and reach the Eastern Conference Finals.

Home-court advantage belongs to the Celtics, who finished the regular season with the same record as the Bucks. Milwaukee tanked the season finale in order to set up a first-round matchup with the Chicago Bulls. The Bucks took care of the Bulls in five games, while the Celtics only needed four games to defeat the preseason NBA favorites.

Boston’s No. 1 ranked defense was spectacular against Brooklyn. Kevin Durant had maybe the worst playoff series of his career, shooting 38.6% from the field with 5.3 turnovers per game. Kyrie Irving was a non-factor after Game 1 with 46 points on 43 shot attempts over three games.

Milwaukee’s offense is likely to struggle in a similar fashion. Khris Middleton is the Bucks’ No. 2 scorer and expected to miss the entire second round, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports.

The Bucks’ 108.3 offensive rating ranks 13th in the playoffs. The Bulls are only an average defensive team. That doesn’t bode well for Milwaukee’s chances to score efficiently against one of the NBA’s best defenses of the last decade.

Giannis Antetokounmpo carried the Bucks in the first round with averages of 28.6 points, 13.4 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game. The 2021 NBA Finals MVP is the best player in the league. Antetokounmpo and Milwaukee’s defense give the Bucks a chance to beat the Celtics and make up for Middleton’s absence.

Milwaukee’s 94.4 defensive rating was far and away the best in the first round. It also came against a Bulls’ team that ranked 26th in offensive rating over the final 15 regular-season games.

The Celtics and Bucks split their four regular-season meetings. Antetokounmpo didn’t play in one of Milwaukee’s losses. Jayson Tatum missed the fourth contest, which Milwaukee won 127-121.

Tatum is establishing himself as one of the league’s top superstars. Excelling on both defense and offense, Tatum averaged 29.5 points, 7.3 assists and 1.8 steals per game against the Nets.

Jaylen Brown averaged 22.5 points on 49.3% shooting in the first round. Marcus Smart contributed 16.5 points and 7.0 assists per game.

Jrue Holiday was Milwaukee’s No. 2 scorer against Chicago, averaging 16.4 points on 40.7% shooting. Much of his value will come on defense, where he can make life difficult for Tatum or Brown.

Holiday was inconsistent offensively for much of last year’s championship run. Middleton was Milwaukee’s go-to scorer in crunch time. The now-injured forward averaged 23.6 points over 23 playoff games a year ago.

Brook Lopez, Grayson Allen and Bobby Portis are the Bucks’ top scoring options after Antetokounmpo and Holiday. It probably won’t be enough to outlast an outstanding Cetlcics’ defense over the course of a long series.

Series Prediction: Celtics in six

Back in action: Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo scores in the Bucks' come-from-behind NBA victory over the Boston Celtics
Back in action: Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo scores in the Bucks' come-from-behind NBA victory over the Boston Celtics GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA via AFP / Patrick McDermott
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