MILWAUKEE — When the Bucks lost big Sunday at Orlando, they dropped to the third seed in the Eastern Conference and sealed a first round matchup with the Indiana Pacers.

Counting the in-season tournament, Indiana won four of five meetings against the Bucks this season. Significantly, the Bucks didn't play the Pacers after January 3. That means the Bucks didn't face Indiana at all with Doc Rivers as head coach.

I'm not suggesting Rivers will tilt the series by himself. Any coaching matchup with Indiana's Rick Carlisle is a challenge.

The health and playing status of Giannis Antetokounmpo looms large in this series. Giannis strained a calf muscle the last week of the regular season. He missed the Bucks' last three regular season games and has until this weekend to get treatment. With him, the Bucks are formidable. Without him, they're vulnerable. The Athletic has reported there's real concern whether Giannis will be ready for Game 1 Sunday.

The young Pacers, led by Oshkosh native Tyrese Haliburton, are hungry. They want to get places the Bucks have already been.

Just like the Pacers have not seen the Bucks with Doc Rivers as coach, the Bucks have not seen the Pacers since Indiana traded with Toronto for Pascal Siakam. He was acquired in mid-January. Siakam was a member of the 2019 Raptors team that rallied past the Bucks in the Eastern Conference finals on the way to the NBA title.

The Bucks won 49 games in the regular season. That likely disappointed some fans who expected more after the acquisition of Damian Lillard.

Not many, though, will remember that regular season if the Bucks get hot in the playoffs. If they don't, and Indiana pulls off the first round upset, there likely will be a price to pay.