The Wisconsin State team defied the odds to win the Championship in the most commanding fashion. When the 2020-21 NBA commenced, the Milwaukee Bucks were not considered as strong favorites. Rather it was the likes of the Los Angeles Lakers who were the defending champions, Brooklyn Nets that fielded the powerful trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors, among others.
The Bucks were seen as long shots but did well to finish the regular season in the third position in the Eastern Conference behind Philadelphia 76ers and Nets and ahead of the Heat and Celtics, with a 46-26 record. Playoff time came and it was believed Mike Budenholzer’s team would not be going far, especially when they met Miami in the first round. They however dispatched the men from the port city 4-0 before seeing off the Nets 4-3 in the conference semifinals.
The Bucks then met Atalanta Hawks in conference finals and won 4-2. What was amazing was they achieved this without having star man Giannis Antetokounmpo in games five and six.
Once they got to the finals where they met Phoenix Suns, there was a sense the Bucks had conquered their biggest obstacles. They however fell to an early 2-0 series loss but bounced back to win 4-2 and lift their second-ever NBA championship and first in 50 years.
The show was mainly about Antetokounmpo though. The Greek power forward of Nigerian descent made his way from being stateless and living in poverty to becoming a constant talking point in the NBA, having been with the Bucks since 2013 when he was drafted as the 15th overall pick.
Giannis was making giant strides, with his versatility and athleticism giving him the nickname “Greek Freak”. For a player able to play all five positions on the court and bagging the NBA most Improved Player (2017) Most Valuable Player award twice (2019 and 2020), Defensive Player of the Year (2020), and named in the NBA All-Star team five times (2017-2021), there was something extraordinary about him. He was NBA championship material and deserved to be in a team that matched his potential.
Antetokounmpo was hungry for success though and was this close to leaving the Bucks for free in 2020. The Wisconsin State team was eager to keep him and offered him a five-year $228 million supermax deal which was the biggest in NBA history.
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That was clearly a statement of intent and it is no surprise the Bucks were finally triumphant after many years of waiting. The move to keep Giannis paid off and it was historic because he and two of his brothers, Kostas and Thanasis, became the first brother trio in NBA history to have championship rings.
Giannis stated he never wanted to leave the city of Milwaukee and knew there was unfinished business there. He asserted he could have gone elsewhere to win a championship but he was ready to do it the hard way.
“I just couldn’t leave,” Giannis said after scoring a joint record of 50 points in deciding game six against the Suns. “Coming back, I was like, ‘This is my city. They trust me. They believe in me. They believe in us.’ …Obviously, I wanted to get the job done. But that’s my stubborn side.
“It’s easy to go somewhere and go win a championship with somebody else. It’s easy. …I could go to a super team and just do my part and win a championship.
“But this is the hard way to do it,” he continued, pounding the dais for emphasis, “and this is the way to do it, and we did it. We f***ing did it.”
The Bucks are third in the Eastern Conference of the ongoing regular season with a 24-13 record, and Giannis has an average of 28.1 points per game, 5.9 assists and 11 rebounds.
At the pace they have been going, the Bucks and Giannis look good to repeat their 2021 heroics in 2022 as well.
