The Philadelphia 76ers open up their season against one of the most talented teams in the Milwaukee Bucks, as both teams tip it off Thursday night inside Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They jump it up at 7:30p7:30 pmthis is just one of two games slated on the NBA docket for this evening. 

Betonline has the Bucks installed as a six-point favorite (-240).  

Milwaukee Bucks Betting Preview

The Bucks (0-0) have one of the shortest NBA title odds at +400 and many believe they are on paper the best team to come out of the Eastern Conference along with the Boston Celtics. The Bucks are a couple of seasons removed from winning it all in 2021 and they have added to an already deep and stacked lineup. They made a monster move by acquiring Portalnd's Damian Lillard in a trade that saw long time star Jrue Holiday involved in the package deal. 

With that being said, the Bucks are still loaded and have a ton of scorers and play makers that can throw on the court at any given time. They are led by all-world player Giannis Antetokounmpo, who inked a three-year, $186 million contract extension on Monday night. He is the heart and soul of the franchise and is coming off a season in which he had a monster season, averaging 31 points per game to go along with 11 boards to pace all players on the team. 

Philadelphia 76ers Betting Preview

The 76ers (0-0) have been one of the most underachieving franchises over the last several years as they have had some bad playoff exits. That prompted them to send HC Doc Rivers packing and in walks Nick Nurse, who was fired from Toronto. Nurse brings a championship moxy and pedigree to the team, but the off-season drama once again surrounding veteran scorer James Harden has taken center stage again. 

There was talk that the 76ers were going to trade him, but that never fell through, but it still promoted Harden to attack the ownership group and demand to be traded. The 76ers would love to have him on the floor to take pressure off of reigning MVP Joel Embiid, who is still in search of his first Eastern Conference Finals appearance with Philadelphia. Embiid was a monster last season as he netted a team-high 33.1 points per clip to go along with a team-high 10.2 rebounds too. His odds to repeat as MVP sit at +850. 

The Sixers might be in for a long season if they do not have Harden, because it will put a ton of strain on Embiid, who will have to log a ton of minutes and do the bulk of the scoring. Harden's status for the opener against the Bucks is in jeopardy.

Game Odds, Series Trends and Free Pick

The Bucks were 44-38 against the spread last season, while the 76ers posted a mark of 48-34 last season. Milwaukee won some close games and was able to outscore its opponents by just under four points per game (3.6), while netting around 116.9 points per game. They allowed just over 113 points on the defensive side. Philadelphia scored around 115 per game while the defense allowed around 110.9 per clip. 

Tough spot for the 76ers to open the season, so we are riding with the new look Bucks -6