Have you ever looked through old boxes and found materials from years ago? An old test, a book, letters? Something that reminds you of a time where things were different? Well, the same thing happened to me, except it wasn’t any sort of accomplishment or fond memory.
A 2013-14 Milwaukee Bucks game program surfaced and instantly brought me back to a time where the team was the laughingstock of the NBA. Those comments you read on popular sports posts making fun of the worst teams? Those were aimed at the 15-67 Bucks.
Exactly two years ago to the day, the Bucks were posting a 13-56 record and in the midst of an eight-game losing streak. Sadly, that wasn’t even their worst losing skid of the season. The Bucks finished the year with a .183 winning percentage, the 17th worst mark in NBA history. Adding on to the pain, despite having the best chance at the number one overall pick, the Bucks fell to second in the following NBA Draft Lottery. Nothing could go Milwaukee’s way.
The Bucks entered the season introducing head coach Larry Drew as their new man in charge. Excitement arose as Drew was coming in with a .557 career winning percentage and 20 playoff wins in three seasons with Atlanta. Drew also played in the league for 10 seasons, averaging double figures in his career. The organization was also being run by Herb Kohl just two years ago.
Administration wasn’t the only difference from the that year. The Bucks’ roster was made up of just four players that they had acquired through the draft. The rest had either come from trade or free agency. Out of the 15 core players to make up the active roster from 2014, just four players are still on the team today (Giannis, Middleton, Henson, Mayo). Three of those players were enduring just their first season with Milwaukee with Giannis being in his rookie year, Khris Middleton being sent over from Detroit in the Brandon Jennings trade, and O.J. Mayo signing with the team through free agency. The top two leading scorers for the Bucks were Brandon Knight and Ramon Sessions.
It was a season to forget.
Following the year, the Bucks’ personnel got a new look. Letting go of their head coach after one year, the Bucks hired Jason Kidd from Brooklyn, just two years out of playing in the league himself. Milwaukee was able to select Jabari Parker second overall in the draft, developing a self-assigned theme of “Own the Future.” Starting out the season much improved, the Bucks hit ten wins before they hit ten losses, certainly a win within itself among Bucks’ fans. Proving it was more than a fluke, the team once hit 8 games over .500 before finally coming back down to Earth. Nonetheless, one year ago today the Bucks posted a 34-35 record, a .305 increase in winning percentage from the year before.
Despite trading their leading scorer Brandon Knight, the Bucks welcomed in another young, promising player in Michael Carter-Williams, further endorsing the “Own the Future” attitude around the team. Experiencing a season-ending injury to Jabari Parking and the departure of Larry Sanders, Milwaukee managed to finish with a 41-41 record, good for sixth place in the Eastern Conference and earning just their second playoff appearance in the last nine seasons. Although severely outmatched by their first round opponent, the Chicago Bulls, the “Young Bucks” proved their worth squeaking out two wins and competing hard in all but the last game in the series.
Then there is today.
The Bucks entered the season with big goals. The resigning of Khris Middleton, along with the addition of Greivis Vasquez and Greg Monroe, raised the ceiling on a very young, but promising squad. The team has dealt with some chemistry issues, along with injuries, and currently sit 11 games under .500. The good news? The Bucks are 21-14 at home this season, with wins over top tier teams such as the Warriors and Cavaliers. Although an inexperienced team is expected to struggle on the road at times, their 9-27 away from the BMO Harris Bradley Center is something we cannot overlook.
While the pessimists will sit there and tell you that last season’s playoff appearance was just a fluke, it is hard to ignore the emergence of Giannis and Jabari Parker. While I am sure you have heard a lot of the stats they are putting up, the team recently enjoyed a stretch of four wins in five games and have moved up in the standings by two spots since the All-Star break. Oh, and did we mention Giannis has had four triple-doubles since February 22? That’s good right?
With the season off to a slow start, the Bucks were one of the main teams in the trade conversation. With teams looking to acquire talent, head coach Jason Kidd made sure everyone knew his young stars were off-limits.
“Those guys [Parker and Giannis] are vault guys.” Kidd told the Journal Sentinel. “They’re in a vault. You don’t start a conversation with Jabari or Giannis…those guys are untradeable.”
Adding Khris Middleton into the mix, the Bucks now have their own “Big Three.” Since adding Greg Monroe and Michael Carter-Williams to the bench, and now with Carter-Williams out for the year, Giannis, Parker, and Middleton have been able to showcase their strengths a bit more. All three players sit at the top of the roster for most minutes played for game and account for 49% of the team’s scoring this season.
The most notable example of this came on February 29 when all three put up extraordinary performances in the team’s 128-121 win versus the Houston Rockets. Parker finished with a career high 36 points, Middleton added 30 of his own, and Giannis messed around and put up a huge triple double of 18 points, 16 assists, and 11 rebounds.
After the game Jabari Parker spoke about playing along side Giannis. “That’s the kind of guy I want on my team for the rest of my career.”
The feeling was mutual for Giannis, saying, “It was fun. It’s a taste from the future. I think the future is bright for us.”
While it is unlikely the Bucks will make a playoff push this year, there is plenty to look forward to. With Bayless, Mayo, and Vasquez the only real threats to leave Milwaukee through free agency this offseason, it holds an opportunity for the Bucks to continue to build through the draft, something that have not done well in recent years.
Their time is coming. Just wait on it.