The Stretch of Schedule the Bucks Must Survive

With the number of teams in the NBA that have talent across the roster, there's bound to be a stretch during the season for a team where they are forced to face some of the leagues best teams night in, and night out.

That task becomes even harder as team when you lose your franchise superstar, and are expected to be one of the worst teams heading into next season. Well, that's the reality for the Milwaukee Bucks this offseason after they traded Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat and committed to a rebuild.

Milwaukee will try to overcome an unfamiliar situation with its new look roster and be a team that shocks people this year as they enter the season with a large chip on their shoulder.

However to do so, the Bucks will have to survive a difficult stretch at the beginning of the season of their schedule if they want to be a competitive team.

The Bucks difficult stretch can easily start as early as the third game of the year where they play the Philadelphia 76ers on Oct. 24 to all the way until Nov. 23 when they play the Toronto Raptors. In that stretch they'll play 16 games against teams who made the playoffs in the last two seasons.

Here is the Bucks' 2026-27 regular season schedule: pic.twitter.com/akmxgGyk2S
— Eric Nehm (@eric_nehm) August 13, 2026

But to narrow it down, here's five games throughout that difficult stretch.

Toronto Raptors

On the ninth game of the season, Milwaukee will face off against the Raptors at home on Nov. 6 to start the Emirates NBA Cup. Toronto was the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference and took the Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games before losing 12 in Game 7.

To make matters harder, the Raptors traded for Kawhi Leonard this summer to reunite the 2019 champion with his former team. Though the trade is currently paused, the potential trio Leonard, Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett could have them as one of the best teams in the conference.

Boston Celtics

Two days later, right after facing off the Raptors, the Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics come to town on Nov. 8. Boston finished last season as the No. 2 seed in the east despite Tatum missing majority of the year.

After starting the series up 3-1 against the 76ers, Philadelphia came back on three straight games to beat the Celtics in the first round. And speaking of Boston and Philadelphia, Jaylen Brown is no longer on the Celtics after he was traded to the 76ers for Paul George. While the duo of Tatum and George might not be the same as Tatum and Brown, Boston still has a good roster along with a great head coach in Joe Mazzulla to make them one of the league's dangerous teams.

New York Knicks

Milwaukee will then go on the road to face the 2026 NBA champions, the New York Knicks at the legendary Madison Square Garden on Nov. 10. The Knicks finally stood on top of the NBA world once they brought a championship back to the city of New York after 50 years and a crazy playoff run. It's going to be hard for the Knicks to repeat as champions in a conference that has a ton of depth, but with finals MVP Jalen Brunson and the rest of New York's roster, anything can happen.

Los Angeles Lakers

The Bucks will head back home the day after facing the defending NBA champions, and play the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 11. LeBron James might be gone, but Luka Dončić and Austin reaves are still there, and with those two on the floor, it's never going to be an easy game.

The Lakers' season ended in the second round of the playoffs after they got pass the No. 5 seed Houston Rockets in the first round in five games, but fell to the No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder in four games. Los Angeles and James parted ways, but they found went out this offseason to give Dončić and Reaves more help.

The Lakers signed-and-traded for Walker Kessler, signed Quentin Grimes, Colin Sexton, Sandro Mamukelashvili and Kevon Looney, as well as drafted Cameron Carr with the No. 24 pick. With these new additions, the Bucks will have to play against a team that is making a push a for a championship.

Orlando Magic

Finally, Milwaukee will travel all the way to the sunshine state to take on another playoff team from last year in the Orlando Magic on Nov. 13. The Magic were one game away from being the seventh No. 8 seed to pull off a first round upset against the No. 1 seed, but lost three straight games to the Detroit Pistons to blow a 3-1 lead.

Orlando made the playoffs after a 45–37 season and got past the play-in to secure their spot. They'll enter next season with a new head coach in Sean Sweeney, who can hopefully take them to that next level of NBA teams.

The Magic are led by the trio of Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Desmond Bane, giving them a strong foundation to lead the way. With those three, as well as their key rotational pieces, they hope Sweeney can unlock the potential in the team to avoid four straight first-round exists.

To make an good impression, it's going to be imperative for Milwaukee to start the season off well to avoid digging themselves into a hole that they won't be able to get out of. It won't take long for that to happen, so the Bucks must survive if they don't want their season to end prematurely.

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