John Hollinger thinks Milwaukee's 15-16 record is more impressive than Detroit's 21-11 record, mostly due to scheduling quirks.
Yes, there have been a couple good wins, including one, ironically, against Milwaukee, but the Rankings aren't bowled over by Detroit's past 10 games against opponents with a combined .422 winning percentage. And the Pistons' full-season numbers (plus-1.0 average scoring margin, .461 opponents' winning percentage) are similarly ho-hum.
Milwaukee, on the other hand, has won only six of its past 10 games. But that stretch includes wins by 15, 24, 34 and 28, a win at San Antonio and a win over Utah. The Bucks have played just 14 home games versus 21 road games, and their opponents have a .522 mark when not playing Milwaukee -- yet the Bucks have a positive scoring margin on the season, and a plus-8.1 margin in the past 10 games.