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“They brought back their core group”- Kendrick Perkins chooses the Milwaukee Bucks as one of the title contenders next season

Keeping their core intact made the Milwaukee Bucks title favorites.
Matthew Dugandzic|
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Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks will be one of the three teams that will contend for the NBA championship next season. This is so according to former NBA player turned analyst Kendrick Perkins, who said the Bucks, the Phoenix Suns, and the defending champions Denver Nuggets are the frontrunners for next year’s title race.

Perkins said re-signing Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton and having the two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo simply make the Bucks a strong title contender.

“They brought back their core group,” Perkins said in one of the episodes of NBA Today on ESPN.

Dangerous when healthy

Hounded by a myriad of injuries, Middleton missed 39 games last season. With the three-time All-Star expected to be in the pink of health next season, the Bucks are going to have a good run, the one-time NBA champion said.

“Khris Middleton will finally get his legs above them,” Perkins said.

Aside from the deadly trio of Giannis, Khris, and Brook, Perkins is expecting two other Bucks to give Milwaukee a huge lift next season.

“We know what Bobby Portis is gonna bring to the table. He didn’t have the best season last year, he was dealing with injuries,” Perkins said.

Portis missed just 12 games last season, but the knee injury that he sustained came in the latter part of the regular season that may have affected his rhythm in the playoffs after sitting out for several weeks.

A revenge season for Holiday

Jrue Holiday is also one of the key Milwaukee players to watch out for next season, Perkins opined.

“Jrue’s gonna come back with a vengeance for the simple fact that he gotta remember what Jimmy Butler did to him last postseason,” Perkins exclaimed.

Holiday was given the unenviable task of guarding Butler when the Bucks battled the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs. Jimmy went off in that series that saw him put up big numbers en route to leading the Miami Heat to a stunning first-round win over the top-seeded Bucks.

With their core group back and the signings of quality free agents such as Malik Beasley and Robin Lopez, plus the acquisition of promising rookies, it is easy to pick the Bucks to be up there in the race for the crown. 

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Matthew Dugandzic
MATTHEW DUGANDZIC

Matthew finished his bachelor's degree in Economics (Management) at the University of Split and got his master's degree in the same field at the University of Zadar. Whether it is playing the game as an undersized 6'3'' power forward or simply watching it, Matthew can't get enough of it. After all, he has been an avid NBA fan since the 2000s. But don't get him wrong, as Matthew still loves the old-school NBA and is a true student of the game. From on-court moments to off-court stuff, whether it's about the stars of modern-day basketball or legends of the game, Matthew covers every category of the NBA world and basketball in general, as long as it makes for an engaging and exciting story.