#8 Khris Middleton – Milwaukee Bucks
2020-21 Stats: 20.4 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.1 STL, 47.6 FG%, 41.4 3P%
Giannis Antetokounmpo was the main reason why the Milwaukee Bucks won the 2021 NBA Finals, but without Khris Middleton, this Bucks team is a completely different team. On both ends of the court, Middleton gets his job done and last season, he averaged 20-plus points per game for the third time in the last four years.
The 2x All-Star wing has proven to be a key player on a championship team and his play in the postseason was exactly what the Bucks needed to win a championship, as he averaged 23.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 5.1 assists on 43.8% shooting from the floor in 23 postseason games.
All the talk in the Eastern Conference is surrounding the Brooklyn Nets and how dominant they will be, but we cannot forget about the defending world champion Milwaukee Bucks. They are going to be just as good as last season, if not better, and while Antetokounmpo is going to get all the attention, Khris Middleton is going to once again be a key reason why Milwaukee finishes the regular season as one of the top teams in the entire NBA.
#7 Jaylen Brown – Boston Celtics
2020-21 Stats: 24.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 3.4 APG, 1.2 STL, 48.4 FG%, 39.7 3P%
Some will call him a shooting guard, but with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart in the Celtics’ backcourt last season, Jaylen Brown spent most of his time at the small forward position and he was fantastic. Brown made the All-Star game in his fifth NBA season last year and averaged career-highs in points, assists, steals, blocks, and in both field goal and three-point percentage.
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He is the No. 2 option on the Celtics next to Jayson Tatum, but Jaylen Brown proved to everyone last season that he is a dominant two-way star in this league. Tatum and Brown together is a very young and dynamic duo that this league will have to deal with for years to come, making the Celtics a sneaky title contender.
Having the ability to impact the game in many different ways is what makes Jaylen Brown a top shooting guard/small-forward in this league and if he did not suffer a torn wrist ligament, who knows, maybe the Celtics could have gone on a run in the playoffs!
Jaylen Brown’s sixth season in the NBA has a real chance to be his best yet and with Jayson Tatum expected to gain a lot more attention on offense this year, Brown could be in line to make the All-Star game in back-to-back seasons.
