Milwaukee Bucks vs. Portland Trail Blazers Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 2/5/2022

Time: 10 p.m. ET

Venue: Moda Center, Portland, OR

Where to watch: ROOT-SP, BSWI

DraftKings: Bucks -8.5

BetMGM: Bucks -8.5

Caesars: NL

Bucks: 32-21 (4th, East)

Trail Blazers: 21-32 (10th, West)

The Milwaukee Bucks got four days off before their last game, and that rest will prove fruitful on Saturday when they hit the road to face the Portland Trail Blazers in the Rose Garden.

Milwaukee last played in a 112-98 win at home against the Washington Wizards highlighted by a triple-double from Giannis Antetokounmpo, going for 33 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists. The win pushed the Bucks to alternate wins and losses over the past five games, going 3-2 after winning their previous three.

It was a much-needed effort for the Bucks after losing 136-100 at home to the Denver Nuggets n their previous game.

"That wasn't us as a team," Antetokounmpo said of the Nuggets game. "I don't remember the last time I lost by 36 in Milwaukee. Obviously that was kind of embarrassing, but at the end of the night, those nights are going to happen. But we were able to come out (tonight), play hard and play together, try to set the tone.

"We have to realize that in order for us to be great, we've got to play hard. We cannot expect that people are just going to hand us the game when we go out there," he said. "People are coming for us. People are hunting us right now. They get excited when they see, ‘Milwaukee Bucks, world champs.' We've got to play every single night hard and build that habit."

Giannis is right, and this is truly the first time in a while that the Bucks have had to deal with some sort of adversity in their championship reign. The defending NBA champs are already down one of their best defenders in Brook Lopez, and have had to deal with a myriad of injuries and COVID issues as they've come. Milwaukee might be the healthiest its been in a while now that Jrue Holiday is at 100 percent healthy.

It's been a while since the Bucks have been on the right path with some wins, but going against a Blazers team fresh off a gigantic trade may be the way to help. The Blazers traded Norman Powell and Robert Covington to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday for Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, and Keon Johnson.

For the Blazers, the trade makes sense due to the emergence of Anfernee Simons and gave them the flexibility to move on from Powell. But in the short term, the frontcourt takes a hit and losing Powell dings the scoring with Damian Lillard on the sideline.

Portland lost its fourth straight game and is coming off a 96-93 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder at home on Friday night. So with the Blazers on the second night of a back-to-back, albeit at home, it's still an uphill battle to take on.

"We're all competitive guys, no matter who is out there. We're all trying to win," Simons said after scoring 19 points in the loss. "So a lot of young guys are going to be able to play and get an opportunity, learn and grow together, build an identity for ourselves as the roster fills out."

The Blazers are in the midst of their own purgatory, and I can't take any thought of taking them even with the points. Especially with another game in less than 24 hours, a rested Bucks team that knows how to win right now is waiting in the wings. I like Milwaukee to take full advantage of that. Bucks by 10

The Bucks are 37-44 ATS off a home win the past three seasons.

The over is 23-16 in the Bucks' last 39 games after covering as a double-digit favorite the last game.

The over is 54-44 when the Blazers are an underdog in the past three seasons.

The Blazers are 11-20 as a home underdog in their last 31.

PG: Jrue Holiday

SG: Grayson Allen
SF: Khris Middleton
PF: Giannis Antetokounmpo
C: Bobby Portis

PG: Anfernee Simons

SG: CJ McCollum
SF: Tony Snell
PF: Greg Brown III
C: Jusuf Nurkic

Bucks: George Hill (neck, out), Brook Lopez (back, out)

Blazers: Damian Lillard (out), Eric Bledsoe (out), Justise Winslow (out), Larry Nance Jr. (knee, out), Keon Johnson (out)