Conference Leaders Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers show weakness

The Lakers have some injury problems while MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo may not be so invincible after all.

When the Milwaukee Bucks won 111-104 against the Los Angeles Lakers last week, it looked like the two conference powerhouses were a league above the rest of the teams in the NBA. Their game looked like a preview of the NBA finals, with both the top seed teams breezing through their playoff rivals. However, on Christmas Day, the world turned upside down, with both sides losing badly against conference rivals.

to be fair, the Lakers had both their superstars injured. Anthony Davis twisted his knee in a game against the Atlanta Hawks, and LeBron James aggravated a pre-existing groin injury against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Lakers are now in a four-game losing streak. They still hold the top seed in the Western Conference, but if their two superstars keep missing games, it presents an opportunity for rivals to beat them in the playoffs.

In the Eastern Conference, 5th place Philadelphia 76ers crushed the Milwaukee Bucks 121-109. The 76ers had a great start to the season. However, after suffering a couple of suspensions and injuries, they dropped to 5th place. The Bucks, on the other hand, lost their opening game and went on a rampage. They won 18 straight games until barely losing to the Dallas Mavericks, 120-116. They won three consecutive games after, even beating Western Conference leaders LA Lakers. everything was going smoothly until their devastating defeat on Christmas Day against the 76ers.

According to Bleacherreport.com, with the invincibility of top seeds in question, it opens both conferences to speculation. It is no longer a certainty that both teams will dominate the league this year.

MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo scored much less than what's expected of him, scoring only 18 points in their game against the 76ers. Averaging 30.5 points this season, that's just over half of what he is usually capable of producing. He also grabbed only 7 rebounds, a bit over half of his 12.9 average.

It's no secret that to hold down powerhouse teams, you have to stop their superstars. The question always has been, "is it possible?" Apparently, it is. Finding out who could do it would make the entire league more exciting this year.