The Milwaukee Bucks are famous for the team of Giannis Antetokounmpo (29‧213cm), one of the current NBA’s best players, the ‘Greek Monster’. In 1968, it was founded in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and it quickly rose to the top of the league as soon as it entered the league. In the case of a new team, it usually takes a considerable amount of time to settle in, but the Bucks were different.
In the first year of its establishment, in the 1968-69 season, it experienced the fear of the NBA with 27 wins and 55 losses for a while, and because of that, it was able to bring the overall No. 1 pick in the rookie draft and nominate a huge newcomer. It was none other than Karim Abdul-Jabbar, one of the greatest centers in history. With Abdul-Jabbar at the center, they were able to build their power as a strong team in a short time, and in the 1970-71 season, the third year of its founding, they beat the Baltimore Bullets with 4 wins and won the championship.
Since its founding, no team has won as fast as Milwaukee at the time. At this time, few would have predicted that it would take an enormous amount of time to win the next championship. Milwaukee, who quickly won its first championship, won its second championship with Antetokounmpo in the 2020-21 season. And currently, they are showing off their dignity as one of the strong teams representing the league.
It is not that there were no winning opportunities before the days of Antetokounmpo. In particular, in the early 2000s, the Big 3 leading to ‘Alien’ Sam Cassell (45 191 cm), ‘Manlab Sugar’ Ray Allen (39 196 cm), and ‘Big Dog’ Glenn Robinson (41 201 cm) have a synergistic effect in addition to individual skills. It was so good that Milwaukee fans had special expectations.
In particular, in the 2000-2001 season, in addition to the Big 3, Lindsay Hunter (53‧188cm) was brought in as a trade, completing the firepower to aim for the presidency. As if to prove this, they performed well in the regular season, ranking first in the Central District, and drove their momentum to the Eastern Conference finals. Unfortunately, his dream was not realized as he lost 3-4 to the Philadelphia 76ers led by Allen Iverson.
However, as can be seen from the fact that they had a close game until the 7th game, Milwaukee at the time was very solid with explosive offense, especially the power of the front line. The regular season match against the Toronto Raptors on April 15, 2001 is representative. At that time, Milwaukee showed various firepower against Toronto led by ‘Air Canada’ Vince Carter (46‧198cm) and showed a fierce bombardment, and the status of a strong player. have demonstrated
At the time, Milwaukee was ranked 2nd in the Eastern Conference and 1st in the Central Division. The Big 3 of Cassel, Allen, and Robinson, and the bench power with Hunter at the fore were solid. Against this, Toronto, 5th in the Eastern Conference and 2nd in the Central District, was a new team founded in 1995 and was based in Canada.
At the time, the NBA was interested in who would be the new star following Michael Jordan, the ‘basketball emperor’. Carter was also one of the strong candidates. He graduated from the University of North Carolina with Jordan, had the same position (shooting guard), the same height (198 cm), had a lot in common, such as rookie of the year and winner of the slam dunk contest. He shared the same line in that he was, above all, an all-weather player who dominated my perimeter. Most of all, like Jordan, his tremendous elasticity was impressive. The fact that they have the same nickname ‘Air’ proves this.
Milwaukee opened the scoring with Allen’s middle shot, then quickly took a 6-0 lead with Cassell’s turnaround jumper. Toronto, which did not go well in the early field, counterattacked by Peterson, who received a pass from Antonio Davis, and succeeded in an exciting alley-oop dunk. Milwaukee didn’t budge. From the beginning, he showed off unwavering firepower with a high field goal accuracy rate.
The vanguard was Alan. The 3-point shot broke through the bottom of the goal and even got a basket count, stirring up the inside and outside of Toronto. Conversely, Toronto’s Yatoo missed the stretch rim. Meanwhile, Carter gritted his teeth. He struggles with offensive rebounds and second shots. However, the support of colleagues was disappointing. Unreasonable attacks continued, and there were more situations where it was not possible to score well.
Toronto’s offense was seldom centered. On the other hand, Milwaukee increased his offensive success rate while riding a good rhythm. When Carter got a basket counter with a dunk shot, Allen counterattacked with a 3-point shot and did not allow Toronto to pursue. If Toronto relied on Carter’s individual offense, Milwaukee succeeded in attacking with all players taking turns centering on Cassel and Allen. As a result, the score gap continued to widen.
Milwaukee’s field goal percentage was very accurate throughout. Even a failed shot fell toward the Milwaukee players, leading to a lot of luck. The sixth man who was replaced in the middle also showed good performance. Allen’s first quarter condition was at its peak. He constantly scored from the perimeter, and with 0.4 seconds left in the game, Toronto fouled off a free throw, and the offense went as he wanted.
Toronto hasn’t been impressive outside of Carter’s personal offense. To make matters worse, even Carter was unreliable in terms of shooting success rate, so Toronto could hardly keep the spark of a counterattack alive. In addition to a good field goal success rate, Milwaukee seemed to pull the reins even more, using various screen plays such as double screens. The first quarter was Milwaukee’s one-sided advantage, 37-20.
The atmosphere at the beginning of the second quarter was chaotic on both sides, with Milwaukee’s Davinham and Toronto’s Charles Oakley having a war of nerves. Maybe that’s why, Milwaukee’s performance was also somewhat lower than in the first quarter. It was a golden opportunity for Toronto to reduce the score gap. However, Toronto failed to show a different look even in front of the opportunity for a reversal.
Milwaukee started to explode again with Cassel’s 3-point shot exploding to Hunter’s perimeter as a catalyst. The score gap widened, and Toronto, which became impatient, made a lot of 3-point shots, but it seemed to bounce off the rim every time. With about 5 minutes left in the second quarter, the score widened to 51-30. Hunter’s high-sensitivity 3-point shot in rhythm dominated the game to the point of reminiscent of Allen in the first quarter.
As a result, even Carter, who grabbed and dragged Toronto by the neck in the first quarter, sank as if he had lost his motivation, and the game did not change. If Allen led the first quarter, Hunter led the attack in the second quarter. Point guard Cassell’s reading was unchangingly stable, and Robinson, who was excited about the performance of his teammates, also added strength by showing a threatening tip-in dunk. At the end of the second quarter, the score was 67-44.
Perhaps he was conscious of the sluggishness in the first half, and as soon as the 3rd quarter began, Carter was all over again. He did not shy away from hustle play as well as going back and forth diligently. However, despite Carter’s fighting spirit, Toronto’s field goal success rate, which had once fallen, could hardly be revived. The rebound and defense were tenacious, but the most important goal decision was in place.
Milwaukee seemed to be slowing down for a while due to Toronto’s momentum, but Cassell’s calm management of the game did not give it over. It wasn’t flashy, but it was faithful to the basics. As with any team, since position 1 holds the center properly, the overall performance of the team, such as pick-and-roll and screen play, flowed naturally.메이저사이트
Even in a situation where the win or loss was leaning toward Milwaukee, Allen and Hunter’s shots were merciless. Whenever I had a chance, I split the net without any doubt. As Milwaukee’s shots continued to explode without ups and downs, Toronto lost motivation and began to use a large number of substitute players as if giving up the game. After the middle of the 4th quarter, Milwaukee also played a game mainly with bench power. Time passed like that, and in the end, Milwaukee finished the game after consistently leading the score without a single crisis. Milwaukee dominated in many areas, including shooting success rate, and the final score was 112-88.