J-Speaks: Bucks Fall Two Games Short Of NBA Finals

The longest losing streak the 2018-19 Milwaukee Bucks suffered was a two-game losing streak during the regular-season. Each time they had lost a game, they were able to bounce back and win. After their only loss this postseason in the Semifinals against the Boston Celtics, the Bucks ran off four straight wins to reach the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2001. After losing in Game 3 in double-overtime to series their series lead cut to 2-1, the question was could the young Bucks bounce back? The answer was no as Game 3 began a slide that would see their season and dreams of competing for a championship conclude. 

Despite getting off to a great start like they did in Game 5 two nights prior, the No. 1 Seed in the East flamed out in the final period as they lost Game 6 versus the No. 2 Seeded Toronto Raptors 100-94 to lose the series 4-2, suffering their longest losing streak of the season four games. 

The Bucks became the sixth team in NBA postseason history to win the first two games at home and lose the next four games of a Conference Finals or NBA Finals series. 

The Portland Trail Blazers did it in the 1977 NBA Finals over the Philadelphia 76ers, led by Hall of Famer Bill Walton. The Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen led Chicago Bulls did it to the Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing led New York Knicks in the 1993 Eastern Conference Finals. The Miami Heat led by future Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade and current NBA on TNT/NBATV studio analyst Shaquille O’Neal did it to the recently retired future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks in the 2006 NBA Finals. Current four-time Kia MVP of the Los Angeles Lakers LeBron James help lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a six-game series win over the Detroit Pistons in 2007 East Finals. The then Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook led Oklahoma City Thunder did it to five-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs in five years later in the Western Conference Finals. 

Things looked promising for the Bucks at the beginning of Game 6 in enemy territory as they led after the first quarter 31-18, going 6 for 9 from three-point range and holding the Bucks to 6 for 19 shooting overall in the opening period. 

The Bucks led by 15 points (38-23) in the second quarter, but the Raptors closed the gap to three at one point 46-43 on a three-pointer by reserve guard Fred VanVleet, who toasted them for 21 points on 7 for 9 from three-point range in the 105-99 win in Game 5 on Thursday night. 

The visitors still led 50-43 at intermission, despite going 4 for 16 shooting in the second quarter and pushed the lead to 15 (76-61) in the third quarter. However, the Raptors on their home floor roared all the way back with a 26-3 run bridging the 6:46 mark of the third and fourth quarters. The Raptors outscored the Bucks 29-18 in the final period going 11 for 19 shooting, including 4 for 8 from three-point range and holding their visitors to 7 for 18 in the final period. 

“We know Toronto’s a great team. They’re going to make runs but as a team we just tried to stay focused and tried to move the ball. Trust one another and execute,” Bucks All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who had 24 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks and two steals said after the loss in his postgame presser. “We knew that they were going to make a run, but you know, obviously we wasn’t able to rebound the ball, and get out in transition to get easy points. So, that’s why we lost the lead.” 

Along with their abysmal shooting in the fourth quarter, the Bucks after going 9 for 18 from three-point range in the first 24 minutes went 3 for 16 in the second half and finished 12 for 34 from distance on the night. 

“I’m not sure I’ll go back and watch this game for a while,” Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer said after the loss in his postgame presser. “My guess is there’s going to be some situations where we missed open shots and there’s going to be some drive possessions where we either don’t execute well enough. We don’t maybe share and pass the ball, play in a crowd. You know, 26-3 runs is usually a little bit of everything. 

What also did not help the Bucks cause in Game 6 and the last four games of the series was the Kia MVP to be in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s weaknesses in his offensive game really showed. 

In the first two rounds of the playoffs, “The Greek Freak” was dominant inside getting to the basket at times at will. Against the Raptors from Game 3 on they basically played a 2-3 zone against him keeping him out of the paint and forcing him to take jumpers from the mid-range, which he did turn down. On top of that when he did take shots from distance, they were from three-point range, where he shot 33.1 percent for the series. 

On top of that, Antetokounmpo really struggled from the charity stripe, where after going 18 for 24 the first two games of the series at home, he went 17 for 36 from the free throw line Games 2-6. 

It was a tough way for a breakthrough season by the 24-year-old from Greece in his fifth NBA season to conclude but if there is one thing that Antetokounmpo has proven each season he has come back better than the year before and as his coach said after the loss he will only get better. 

“To think for us and to be excited about his future at 24, it’s just the easy narrative, easy story that this is part of Giannis’ stepping,” Coach Budenholzer, whose team suffered its fourth straight loss, their longest losing streak of the entire season said of the continued growth of his star player. “But I think the thing that makes Giannis unique and exciting is in our minds we feel like he’s going to get a lot better.” 

“At 24, some guys are, you know, I don’t want to say they are who they are. And some of the great ones at 24 were the same at 30, 32 so on and so forth. Giannis, we feel like has a lot of room to grow and our entire roster we feel excited about can grow.” 

The Bucks organization led on the floor by Coach Budenholzer and the front office of team president Peter Feign, General Manager Jon Horst and the ownership group of Wes Edens, Marc Lasry, Jamie Dinan, and Mike Fascitelli will have decisions this offseason to make about that roster.

Starting center Brook Lopez, who had 18 points, nine rebounds and three blocks in Game 6 will be an unrestricted free agent as will starting guard Malcolm Brogdon, who averaged 13.5 points and 5.2 rebounds on 35.1 percent from three-point range against the Raptors. Sharp shooting forward Nikola Mirotic, who the Bucks acquired at the February trade deadline will also be an unrestricted free agent and first time All-Star Khris Middleton, who had 14 points on 4 for 8 from three-point range in Game 6 will for sure not exercise his player option and become an unrestricted free agent as well. 

Each of these players had a stellar season and played a huge role in the Bucks having the best record in “The Association” for the first time since the 1973-74 NBA campaign where they made it to The Finals and lost against the Boston Celtics in seven games. 

The No. 1 priority is keeping Middleton in the fold because he was really the only legitimate second scorer next to Antetokounmpo during the regular season, where he averaged 18.3 points, six boards, and 4.3 assists on 37.8 percent from three-point range. 

“This is a special place. A special team just from what we built from the time Giannis has been here,” Middleton said on Monday, “From one of the worst teams in the league to one of the best. A championship contending team that fell short of a Finals spot two games this year. So, it’s a special place that we’ve built up.”

The second priority should be Brogdon, the 2016 Kia Rookie of the Year, who not only provided offensive production from the guard position, he gave the Bucks another ball handler and his scoring made up for the awful series that starting lead guard Eric Bledsoe had, averaging just 10.2 points and 4.2 assists going 5 for 29 from three-point range and an abysmal 29.8 percent overall from the floor. 

“We had fun,” Brogdon said of the Bucks 2018-19 season. “I think Coach Bud brought a totally different culture in here, opposed to our last staff of just having fun and enjoying what you do. Having a certain level of focus and concentration but doing it together and enjoying it.” 

The most difficult decision for the Bucks front office is deciding to keep either Lopez or Mirotic.

In Lopez, the Bucks have a starting big man who can shoot as well as protect the basket, which as major reason why the Bucks were a top defensive team this season and one of the best rebounding teams in the NBA in 2018-19. 

Lopez was a major reason the Bucks won Game 1 of this series where he scored 13 of a playoff career-high 29 points in the fourth quarter with 11 rebounds and four block shots on 12 for 21 shooting, which included for made three-pointers. 

“I’d love to come back,” Lopez said. “You know, it’s been a great home for me. I’d absolutely want to be here.”  

While Mirotic was a nice edition, his playing time was minimal at best during this playoff run. He did have some nice moments in the Semifinals against the Celtics but was nonexistent for the most part in the Conference Finals.

For the Milwaukee Bucks, the 2018-19 season was one of the very best they had in many years. They had as mentioned the best record in the NBA at 60-22 for the first time in 45 years. They advanced past the First-Round for the first time since 2001. Made their first Conference Finals appearance in 18 years. They have a star player, who has a high-level work ethic and a focus on making his teammates better and can take coaching. 

Above all, the fan support for the Bucks has been at a level not seen in many years. If you saw the crowds outside Fiserv Forum during TNT’s Eastern Conference Playoff coverage, there were fans for miles with the Bucks gear on screaming in support of their squad. 

“It’s just fun, you know. Walk around Milwaukee and see people in Bucks stuff. And, you know, we were able to bring people out of their houses to come and enjoy games. Just to be a part of the Milwaukee Bucks,” Antetokounmpo said.  

In the climb to be a championship level team like the Golden State Warriors of today and teams like the San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets of past seasons you have to crawl before you can walk. Walk before you can run and run before you can fly. 

The Bucks crawled, walked, and ran this past regular-season and postseason. For them to fly and become a championship team, Antetokounmpo has to become a consistent marksman from mid-range and possibly three-point range and the team has to continue to add the right pieces around him. Re-signing Middleton is priority No. 1, as well as Brogdon and hopefully Lopez. 

The Bucks showed this season that they can contend with the best in the NBA. For them it is now getting to a point where they can get back here again and finish the job and make to The Finals and win it all, and both Antetokounmpo and Coach Budenholzer know that. 

“We’re going to be who we want to be,” Antetokounmpo, who averaged 22.7 points, 13.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 2.7 block shots against the Raptors said to the media on Monday. “We’re going to put ourselves in a place to be a championship contending team for many years to come and there’s not a lot of teams that can say that in the league.” 

“When you consider how this team competed every night. How they came to work, I think it was a huge success,” Coach Budenholzer said on Monday to the press. “They’ll be one team that’s still standing at the end of the year but I think to think all the other 29 teams didn’t have success is an unfair way to judge. It’s our life and what we signed up for… I’m incredibly excited about the next year, the year after that and the future.” 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 5/23/19 8:30 p.m. “Toronto Raptors versus Milwaukee Bucks,” Game 5 Eastern Conference Finals, presented by Google Pixel on TNT with Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, and Kristen Ledlow; 5/25/19 8 p.m. TNT “NBA Tip-Off,” presented by Autotrader with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley, and Shaquille O’Neal; 5/25/19 8:30 p.m. “Milwaukee Bucks versus Toronto Raptors,” Game 6 of Eastern Conference Finals on TNT, presented by Google Pixel with Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, and Kristen Ledlow; 5/25/19 11 p.m. edition of “Inside the NBA,” presented by Kia on TNT with Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley, and Shaquille O’Neal; Year-by-Year Review section, page 648 of Sporting News’ “Official 2006-07 NBA Guide;” https://www.nba.com/games/20190525/MILTOR#/recap; www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameid=401131840; www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/6609/khris-middleton; www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/4238/eric-bledsoe;  www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/3032977/giannis-antetokounmpo; www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/2566769/malcolm-brogdon; 5/27/19 interviews via Bucks Twitter page @Bucks.