You probably know the Milwaukee Bucks are an NBA franchise. They are currently one of the top teams in the NBA. You might not, however, know much about their illustrious past.
The Milwaukee Bucks were founded by Wesley D. Pavalon and Marvin L. Fishman in 1968. So they are approximately 65 years old. They weren’t always a top team in the East. During their first season of existence they finished 27-55; that’s not even above a .500 record.
Have you heard of Jon McGlocklin? He was the Bucks leading scorer in 1968. He was a member of the Bucks from 1968-76. The very next season, the Bucks finished second in the East and had a 56-26 record; that’s 3o games above .500; a very successful regular season. Their leading scorer was Lew Alcindor; he was the first overall pick. In the playoffs, the Bucks lost in the Eastern Division Finals versus New York. The next four seasons, the Bucks were on top of the East. This is when Lew Alcindor (aka Kareem Adul-Jabbar) took over the NBA with the Bucks bringing home their first NBA Championship in 1971.
Kareem led the team to its very first NBA Championship in his first season and was awarded MVP as well as Finals MVP. Larry Costello was head coach through the 1976-77 season until Don Nelson came in as head coach. The 1977-78 season went down hill a little. The Bucks were the 6th best team and lost in the second round of playoffs to the Denver Nuggets.
The very next season, 1978-79, the Bucks went down hill even more, failing to make the playoffs for the fourth time in the team’s history. During the 1979-80 season, the Bucks were the second seed in the East, losing in the second round in a game 7 vs the Seattle Supersonics. The team had a 49-33 record. The Bucks are a Western team at this point because there weren’t East and West as we have today. They were an East team in the 1980-81 season. In that season, and the 1981-82 season, the Bucks emerged as the number two team in the East (during both of these seasons, the Bucks lost in the second round to the Philadelphia 76ers).
The Bucks lost in the third round during the 1982-82 season. Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) Sidney Moncrief and Coach of the Year (COY) Don Nelson led the team during this period of history. The 1983-84 season was lost in the third round versus the Celtics and Sidney Moncrief was again named DPOY. During the next two seasons, the Bucks lost in the second and third rounds, respectively. During the 1986-87 season, the Bucks went from the second seed to fourth seed with 6th man of the year Ricky Pierce. The Bucks made the playoffs during the next four seasons but lost in the first or second round. Head coach Del Harris eventually gave way to new head coach Frank Hamblen. Mike Dunleavy coached the team during the 1992-1997 seasons. The Bucks didn’t make the playoffs from 1991-1998. Chris Ford coached the team from 1996-1998.
George Karl was named head coach for the 1999-200o season. That season the Bucks lost in the first round of the playoffs. During the 2000-2001 season, the team went 52-30 and lost in the third round versus the 76ers.
Now we are going to skip some time until the 2013 season when the Bucks draft Giannis Antetokounmpo with the 13th pick of the draft. He is the centerpiece of today’s team. The Bucks again enjoy some playoff success during the 2016-17 season when Giannis wins Most Improved Player of the Year (MIP) and Malcolm Brogdan is named rookie of the year. The Bucks lose in the first round. Then, in the 2018-19 season, Giannis wins his first Most Valuable Player of the Year (MVP) and Mike Budenholzer is named coach of the year. Jon Horst is also named Executive of the Year (EOY) as the Bucks lose in the conference finals versus the Raptors.
The Bucks lose in the second round of the 2019-2020 season versus the Miami Heat as Giannis wins his second MVP and first Defensive Player of the Year award. The Bucks finally break through during the 2020-21 season (also known as the COVID season) to win the NBA Championship versus the Phoenix Suns. Giannis, the All-Star MVP that season, is named Finals MVP. In addition, all-star guard Jrue Holiday is named Sportsmanship Player of the Year (SPOR).
With the start of a new season, the Bucks are now looking to reclaim the championship under new coach Adrian Griffin. They traded Jrue Holiday for Damian Lillard in an effort to get more playmakers to aid Giannis in pursuit of this goal. They have an excellent chance of doing so and are currently 16-7 with home games through Christmas.
