Milwaukee Bucks’ Redemption Tour: From 2-8 to NBA Cup Contenders
LAS VEGAS — The Milwaukee Bucks are proving that a rough start doesn’t have to define a season. After beginning their campaign with a dismal 2-8 record, the Bucks have turned things around in spectacular fashion, becoming the only team to return to the NBA Cup for the second consecutive year. Now, with an 11-3 run since that rocky start, Milwaukee is heading into Saturday’s East semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks undefeated in Cup play (5-0) and hungry to erase the sting of last year’s semifinal exit.
For star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, this year’s tournament is about redemption. “We were playing very, very bad basketball at the beginning of the year, and we just needed to win games,” Antetokounmpo admitted during Friday’s media day. “We were bad. Now we’ve been competing, we’ve been playing better, guys are together, and we’ve had a great stretch. We’ve just got to keep it going.”
Turning the Tide
Antetokounmpo credits the Bucks’ early struggles for instilling a sense of urgency in the team. The NBA Cup, with its high-stakes format, provided the perfect opportunity to channel that energy into meaningful wins. “In the beginning of the season when we were 2-8, it’s a feeling like you don’t like,” he said. “Nobody likes losing; everybody plays to win. I think we definitely had as a team, a little more urgency. We had to fix some things. We had to play more team basketball, we had to compete at a higher level.”
One key to the turnaround has been the partnership between Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. Even during the team’s darkest moments, Lillard said he never doubted their ability to bounce back, thanks in large part to Antetokounmpo’s unwavering mindset. “His mind was never shut off, he was never discouraged, he was never overly concerned,” Lillard shared. “There was always fight. Our conversations had always been like, ‘We’re going to turn it around, we’re going to figure it out, we’ve got to lead, we’ve got to keep going, we’ve got to dominate.’”
That shared determination has paid off. Since coming together to address the team’s struggles, the Bucks have been playing what Antetokounmpo calls “great basketball.”
A Playoff-Like Test
For head coach Doc Rivers, the NBA Cup has been a valuable measuring stick for his team. “Every year your team’s on a different journey,” Rivers said. “Mixing those two groups together and seeing how we react is a good thing. It’s a great teacher. I’ll learn something through this. I just don’t know what it is. Every team will get something out of this that will help them moving forward.”
Rivers jokingly referred to the Bucks as the “old team” in the semifinals field, which also includes the Hawks, the Houston Rockets, and the Oklahoma City Thunder. But age and experience could work in Milwaukee’s favor as they navigate the playoff-like intensity of the tournament.
Lillard echoed that sentiment, calling the NBA Cup an opportunity to prepare for the postseason. “We’ve gotten ourselves going in the right direction,” he said. “We’ve been able to win a lot of games lately, and this is just another opportunity for us to continue that, but with more on the line and with us to get even more momentum from an experience like this.”
Eyes on the Prize
While the Bucks are proud to have made it back to the semifinals, they’re not content to stop there. Last year’s loss to the Indiana Pacers still lingers, and the team is determined to take the next step this time around. For Antetokounmpo, the focus remains on maintaining the level of play that has brought them this far. “From the time we [addressed our struggles] … we’ve been playing great basketball,” he said.
As the Bucks prepare to face the Hawks, one thing is clear: this team has come a long way from its early-season woes. With their sights set on the NBA Cup, Milwaukee is proving that resilience and teamwork can turn a season around—and maybe even lead to a championship.
- Updates and FAQ on format, prize money
- The top 25 players in the knockout rounds
- Group-play MVP, surprises, more
- All 30 NBA teams reveal new court designs
- How LeBron, Lakers won last year
Originally Written by: Jamal Collier
