12:27 AM – The NBA playoff schedule has been released.
The schedule is as follows per AP basketball writer Tim Reynolds
The 2019 NBA Playoffs first-round schedules: pic.twitter.com/bJqcmwKosT
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) April 11, 2019
Game 1 of the Bucks vs. Pistons series will be on Sunday at 6 pm local time
9:30 pm – The Bucks will face the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the NBA playoffs. With a Orlando Magic win over the Charlotte Hornets, as well as a Pistons victory over the Knicks, the Pistons lock in their spot as the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference.
Original Story: You could forgive the super-focused Giannis Antetokounmpo and his teammates if their eyes and attention are not on the court tonight for the Bucks’ home game against the Oklahoma City Thunder (6:30 p.m. on WTMJ sister station ESPN Milwaukee).
That’s because the one thing left for the MIlwaukee Bucks to find out about their playoff pathway is whom they will play in each round. By about 9:30 p.m., that should be decided tonight.
The NBA released all the remaining Eastern Conference playoff scenarios, with the sixth, seventh and eighth seeds yet to be decided.
The eighth seed is the one the Bucks are focusing on. As the top seed in the entire NBA playoffs with home court advantage for every seed, the Bucks would face that No. 8 team.
Three teams – Charlotte, Detroit or Orlando – could be that eighth seed, with game one of a best-of-seven first-round series as early as Saturday or Sunday.
The scenarios are complicated due to tiebreakers and other factors, but here is what is involved.
Games in play tonight, all at 7 p.m. Milwaukee time:
– Miami Heat at Brooklyn Nets
– Orlando Magic at Charlotte Hornets
– Detroit Pistons at New York Knicks
Here is the lowdown for whom the Bucks would face in the first round:
1) The Bucks face the Detroit Pistons IF
– Orlando defeats Charlotte
OR
– Detroit beats New York AND Miami beats Brooklyn
2) The Bucks face the Charlotte Hornets IF
– Charlotte beats Orlando AND New York beats Detroit
3) The Bucks face the Orlando Magic IF
– Brooklyn beats Miami AND Charlotte beats Orlando AND Detroit beats New York
Stay tuned. The scoreboard watching will be fun.