The landscape of the Eastern Conference was severely altered prior to the All-Star break with the Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors acquiring talent at the trade deadline. The Bucks added sharpshooting forward Nikola Mirotic, who's expected to make his Milwaukee debut on Thursday. Mirotic is being added to a roster that is already extremely deep and earned the best record (43-14) in the East during the first half of the season.

Meanwhile, the Boston Celtics entered the season with expectations to be one of the top teams in the conference. However, they've had their fair share of rough patches and ultimately left their roster the same at the trade deadline. This is also a very deep group led by All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, who is in the midst of one of the most important years of his NBA career. Boston will likely be without Gordon Hayward in this game as the veteran forward deals with an injured ankle.

How to watch Celtics at Bucks

  • Date: Thursday, Feb. 21
  • Time: 8 p.m. ET
  • Location: Fiserv Forum -- Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Streaming: fuboTV - (free trial - NBA League Pass add-on available)
  • TV: TNT
  • Live stats: GameTracker
  • Odds: Bucks -5.5

Odds and analysis

Check Sportsline's NBA pick sheet for all your daily odds.

Storylines

Celtics: Boston will be a tad shorthanded without Hayward in the lineup, so it's worth keeping an eye on who steps up in his absence. The good news for Boston is that the team will have Irving back in the lineup after he suffered a minor knee injury prior to the All-Star break. Irving could certainly carry the bulk of the scoring load with the Bucks being one of the Celtics' tougher opponents that they'll face this season.

Bucks: Milwaukee looked like an absolute dominant force during the first half of the season. Now the team has added Mirotic, who appears to be recovered from a calf injury that has kept him sidelined since being acquired by the Bucks. It'll be interesting to see the dynamic with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Mirotic and how the floor spacing plays out. Mirotic gives the team a 3-point-shooting threat that could pay huge dividends when the postseason rolls around.

Game prediction, pick

The Celtics are certainly going to be looking to elevate their standing in the East, but the Bucks are a tough challenge on the first night back in the second half. Take the Bucks in this one due to the home-court advantage.