The 2021-22 NBA regular season kicked off earlier this week, with the first double-header of the new league year involving four teams who are all expected to make deep playoff runs next spring — the Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, and of course the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks. While is was just one game in a marathon of a season, the Giannis-led Bucks looked primed and ready to defend their 2021 NBA Finals trophy against any and all newcomers.
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However, the latest results from the SB Nation Reacts survey paints a different picture, with 42% of fans saying they believe it will be the Nets — not the Bucks — who will eventually come out of the Eastern Conference, despite everything that is going on with their star PG Kyrie Irving.