The Boston Celtics completed the season series sweep against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday, beating them 111-105. Despite their defeat, Bucks coach Doc Rivers remains optimistic about his team and thinks they can defeat the reigning champions again.
Rivers has set his eyes on the postseason, citing that Milwaukee has time to improve their issues and face the Celtics. After the game, the head coach spoke to reporters about potentially meeting Boston in the 2025 NBA Playoffs.
“Right now, we’re in the game with them, but we haven’t beaten them,” Rivers said. “And we do believe we have a big stretch that we’re going to get better. We’re going to get a lot better. And they will too a little bit, but we will a lot. So, yeah, we hope to play them again in the playoffs. In the late rounds. And we’ll see how it goes. But right now, they’re the champs, and until someone beats them, they’re the champs.”
Milwaukee showed energy and effort against Boston. However, that wasn’t enough to give them the win. They outrebounded the defending champions, snatching 51 boards in the game, more than the 41 rebounds the Celtics pulled down.
They also had 11 second-chance points, while the Celtics had none. Unfortunately for the Bucks, they couldn’t get a win over the Celtics. Giannis Antetokounmpo and his squad shot better from beyond the arc and knocked down 37.9% of their shots.
Rivers pointed out the difference between the Bucks and the Celtics
While the Bucks did their best to make the game competitive, the Celtics performed better overall. After the game, the head coach pointed out the major differences between the two teams.
“The difference is they didn’t settle,” Rivers said. “They kept playing, and I thought we settled. It’s night and day, the difference between the two teams. They’re a made team. They’ve been through it. They’ve been through the war together.”
“They understand it, and they play that way,” Rivers added. “They have the ultimate trust. They’ll pass until there’s one second on the clock to try to find someone. They did that a couple of times and that’s why they are what they are. That wasn’t them two years ago, and it is them now. That’s what makes them the champions.”
Milwaukee will try to defeat the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday after suffering two straight losses.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen with Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
