The Boston Celtics beat the Milwaukee Bucks 109-102 on Nov. 4, a seven-point result that fits the early gap in their outlooks: Boston is in the 90–100% playoff band, while Milwaukee sits at 0–10%. Those bands are projections, not a verdict after only eight games of an 82-game season.
Across Wednesday’s eight NBA games, close finishes and a 30-point blowout shared the slate. The Philadelphia 76ers and Boston both won against teams with sharply different projected playoff positions; other results offered little reason to treat early odds as settled.
Boston’s win reinforces the early contrast with Milwaukee
Boston (6-2) has a 90–100% playoff band and 50 projected wins. Milwaukee (1-7) is projected for 30 wins and has a 0–10% band. Both teams are in the 10–20% championship band? No: Boston is in the 10–20% championship band, while Milwaukee has no championship band listed.
The game was not a blowout, but the result adds to a difficult start for Milwaukee: it has lost seven of eight. Boston’s position is sturdier, though eight games are too few to make either record a final measure of the season.
Philadelphia, Detroit and the close finishes
Philadelphia (8-1) beat the Detroit Pistons 112-106. Both teams have 90–100% playoff bands; Philadelphia is projected for 50 wins and Detroit for 48. The 76ers’ league-best listed record gives them the stronger early start, but the six-point win does not separate their projected playoff outlooks.
The San Antonio Spurs edged the Dallas Mavericks 112-111. San Antonio is 6-2; Dallas is 4-4 and sits in the 20–30% playoff band with 39 projected wins. That one-point finish went against Dallas’ result, but San Antonio has no playoff band supplied for comparison.
The Miami Heat beat the Los Angeles Clippers 117-116. Miami (3-5) is in the 40–50% playoff band with 37 projected wins; the Clippers (1-7) are in the 0–10% band with 32 projected wins. The narrow margin makes this a tight game, not evidence that their broader outlooks have converged.
Blowouts and wins for teams with low playoff bands
The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Sacramento Kings 116-103. The Lakers (7-2) have a 90–100% playoff band and 48 projected wins; Sacramento (1-7) is in the 0–10% band with 28 projected wins.
The Atlanta Hawks defeated the Washington Wizards 120-105. Atlanta (5-4) is in the 80–90% band and projects for 43 wins; Washington (4-4) has no playoff band listed. The Brooklyn Nets (2-6), in the 10–20% band, beat the Charlotte Hornets (3-6), also in the 10–20% band, 114-104. Brooklyn is projected for 31 wins, Charlotte 32.
The New York Knicks routed the Chicago Bulls 135-105. Chicago (1-7) has a 0–10% playoff band and 28 projected wins; no playoff band is listed for New York (4-4).
Boston Celtics–Milwaukee Bucks remains the clearest comparison
No upcoming schedule was supplied, so the next meeting among Wednesday’s teams cannot be identified. For now, Boston–Milwaukee is the clearest standings contrast in the results: a Celtics win over a 1-7 Bucks team whose playoff band is 0–10%.
Research sources
Additional reporting checked 2026-11-05T14:03:18.125Z.
