Washington (33 - 16)

Expert Pick
100% ····················>< 0%

Milwaukee (33 - 16)

Beasts of the East.


WAS (27-10) The Wiz have easily been one of the most successful Eastern Powerhouses ever since the NSL was formed. Two ECF appearances with a heart breaking 7 game series loss in the finals to their name. Their fanbase are loyal and prepared to wait it out as long as needed until they bring home NSL gold. I would argue this season they have looked their most potent. finding early success off the back of their big 3 in Lebron/Booker/Holiday. While their roster may seem a little 'top heavy' in a 2K world that revolves around the top tier elite talent and what they can do in game; this may prove irrelevant. That being said they have hit a bit of a rough spot. Going 7-9 since week 6 hasn’t exactly done wonders in keeping the other budding Eastern elite off their heels. A Stark contrast when compare to the unit we saw come screaming out of the gates weeks 1-5 as they went 20-1 looking like the new rendition of Thanos. MIL (24-12) The defending champs. Under new management. Trying to find their OWN identify. Turncoat jokes aside this is a hard spot to be in for even a seasoned vet like Ethan. Who has come from the perennial blood bath that IS the West. No stranger to winning, Ethan brings his skills to this already established franchise hoping to make his own mark. Off the back of a monster trade sending out PG for depth it's yet to be seen whether this was the right move to make, both for this seasons hopeful success as well as serving their long term plans. A complete polar opposite to the Wiz in terms of this seasons time line of form. They came out of the gates somewhat struggling, at least for their standards. In weeks 1 through 3 they went 5-7 since going 19-5 to slowly climb their way back up the ranks, now sitting 3 games behind the Wizards. Backcourt: Booker/Holiday Vs SGA/Buddy SGA has been on fire. A well established MVP front runner who will stay at that same level or better for years to come. He's the true reason Ethan made the move across in an attempt to be steering the ship with a guy like him as your 2IC. Buddy serves his purpose. The typical glitch guard whos performance in game tends to outshine his NBA self. For what he lacks on the defensive end he more then makes up for offensively as a literal flame thrower from deep. There's not many back courts in the league that could give SGA and any other player a run for their money. That being said if there WAS one it would be the Wizards duo. The perfect combination of Elite 2K play on both ends. Booker capable of going off for 40+ any given night, paired with Holidays elite defensive skills and instincts… For MOST this proves too much. A slight edge to the Bucks. SGA's 'ceiling game' far eclipses that of any other guard/player in the league. Buddy will do his thing and depending on the Wizards defensive match ups, even being able to limit Buddy from 3 may not be enough. Frontcourt: Capela/Lebron Vs Mamba/PG. The Wizards frontcourt goes without saying… Much like the example given prior of 'SGA and any other given player'. The same can be said for anyone you chose to link up next to Bron. Let alone a rim running beast like Capela who eats boards for breakfast. Lebron who is MORE then capable paying the 'small ball' 4 has paired well with a big such as Capela all season long. Bucks out here running a Wizards frontcourt from Temu. Sure Bamba has that elite length and athleticism but the Wizards duo are on another level, even with Lebron past 40. In game he is still so good and the Wiz get the check for me on this front.

WAS (27-10)

The Wiz have easily been one of the most successful Eastern Powerhouses ever since the NSL was formed. Two ECF appearances with a heart breaking 7 game series loss in the finals to their name. Their fanbase are loyal and prepared to wait it out as long as needed until they bring home NSL gold. I would argue this season they have looked their most potent. finding early success off the back of their big 3 in Lebron/Booker/Holiday. While their roster may seem a little 'top heavy' in a 2K world that revolves around the top tier elite talent and what they can do in game; this may prove irrelevant.

That being said they have hit a bit of a rough spot. Going 7-9 since week 6 hasn’t exactly done wonders in keeping the other budding Eastern elite off their heels. A Stark contrast when compare to the unit we saw come screaming out of the gates weeks 1-5 as they went 20-1 looking like the new rendition of Thanos.

MIL (24-12)

The defending champs. Under new management. Trying to find their OWN identify. Turncoat jokes aside this is a hard spot to be in for even a seasoned vet like Ethan. Who has come from the perennial blood bath that IS the West. No stranger to winning, Ethan brings his skills to this already established franchise hoping to make his own mark.

Off the back of a monster trade sending out PG for depth it's yet to be seen whether this was the right move to make, both for this seasons hopeful success as well as serving their long term plans. A complete polar opposite to the Wiz in terms of this seasons time line of form. They came out of the gates somewhat struggling, at least for their standards. In weeks 1 through 3 they went 5-7 since going 19-5 to slowly climb their way back up the ranks, now sitting 3 games behind the Wizards.

Backcourt: Booker/Holiday Vs SGA/Buddy

SGA has been on fire. A well established MVP front runner who will stay at that same level or better for years to come. He's the true reason Ethan made the move across in an attempt to be steering the ship with a guy like him as your 2IC. Buddy serves his purpose. The typical glitch guard whos performance in game tends to outshine his NBA self. For what he lacks on the defensive end he more then makes up for offensively as a literal flame thrower from deep.

There's not many back courts in the league that could give SGA and any other player a run for their money. That being said if there WAS one it would be the Wizards duo. The perfect combination of Elite 2K play on both ends. Booker capable of going off for 40+ any given night, paired with Holidays elite defensive skills and instincts… For MOST this proves too much.

A slight edge to the Bucks. SGA's 'ceiling game' far eclipses that of any other guard/player in the league. Buddy will do his thing and depending on the Wizards defensive match ups, even being able to limit Buddy from 3 may not be enough.

Frontcourt: Capela/Lebron Vs Mamba/PG.

The Wizards frontcourt goes without saying… Much like the example given prior of 'SGA and any other given player'. The same can be said for anyone you chose to link up next to Bron. Let alone a rim running beast like Capela who eats boards for breakfast. Lebron who is MORE then capable paying the 'small ball' 4 has paired well with a big such as Capela all season long.

Bucks out here running a Wizards frontcourt from Temu. Sure Bamba has that elite length and athleticism but the Wizards duo are on another level, even with Lebron past 40. In game he is still so good and the Wiz get the check for me on this front.

Wizards Star

Jrue Holiday
The betting man says Holiday will match up against SGA. Anything at all that can be done to stop the inevitable tides that is SGA's Dominance.

PPG 15.4

RPG 3.8

APG 4.6

SPG 1.2

BPG 0.4

FPG 2.4

TPG 1.3

PPG 7.7

RPG 10.2

APG 1.3

SPG 1.3

BPG 2.4

FPG 2.2

TPG 0.9

Bucks Star

Mohamed Bamba
The big man down low will prove to be the deciding factor for the Bucks. Does his inflated numbers and defensive stats actually translate to winning? Time will tell.

X-Factor
Mobley is a huge out let's not dance around it. With him watching from the bench all of a sudden the Bucks look super small and until their recent trade acquisitions can come to fill in the holes. This week they're going to be thrown to the Wolves, no pun intended.

Injury Report
Injured Players: Evan Mobley (Illness/Ankle/Calf) - 5 NBA Games missed this season Johnny Juzang (Thumb/Hand) - 8 NBA Games missed this season Returning Players: Paul George (returning from Knee/Injury Management/Groin/Ankle) - 14 NBA Games missed this season	Injured Players: Vince Williams Jr. (Leg/Ankle) - 41 NBA Games missed this season

Prediction
Wizards by double digits. It's a shame that we aren't seeing this early clash of two 'true contenders' out East while they're full healthy. I think the Wiz prove to be too strong even on the Bucks homecourt. Lebron will have his way and the Wiz will prove too much.

		Comments (2)
EthanC21 01/31 05:48 am	Thanks for the write up! I think it'll be a big double digit win to the wizards, but hope we can hang around.
Joshua 01/31 05:03 am	Thanks for the write. Look forward to this one. SGA can win games by himself so always nervous coming up against. Hope your predictions are accurate

	MIL	93
	PHI	89

	POR	100
	PHO	113

	MEM	109
	CHA	107

	MIL	109
	MIN	104

	SAC	108
	LAC	120