Giannis Antetokounmpo’s ‘worst postseason ever’ calls for soul searching

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Like many teams, the Milwaukee Bucks opened the playoffs by posting a sign that would count down from 16, the number of wins needed to claim a championship. Ten days later, there was no longer any progress to track, as the NBA’s top overall seed had been upset by the Miami Heat in shocking fashion.

“We were stuck at 15,” Giannis Antetokounmpo said. “For me, I think this has been the worst postseason ever.”

The Heat, led by an incandescent Jimmy Butler, claimed a 128-126 Game 5 overtime victory at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum on Wednesday, sending the Bucks to a historic early exit. Milwaukee became just the sixth No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 8 seed in the first round, but each of the previous five won at least two games before bowing out. The Bucks also became the first team to be upset by an opponent that qualified through the play-in tournament, squandering an extra five days of rest when they dropped Game 1. Even in Antetokounmpo’s first playoff appearance, when he was 20 years old, the Bucks claimed two wins off the Chicago Bulls in a 2015 first-round exit.

This series loss, which rekindled memories of Miami’s second-round upset of Milwaukee in the Bubble in 2020, was about far more than just Antetokounmpo’s untimely lower back injury, which forced him from the court in Game 1 and sidelined him for the next two contests. Though Antetokounmpo and Coach Mike Budenholzer refused to call this season a “failure,” the Bucks must treat their disastrous ending as an opportunity for organizational soul searching, just as they did three years ago.

In the wake of their dismal Disney World stay, Milwaukee swung a big trade for Jrue Holiday and re-signed Antetokounmpo to a long-term contract extension, thereby solidifying their defensive identity and setting the table for a 2021 championship run. This summer, the Bucks find themselves at a crossroads again: Khris Middleton, a three-time all-star and longtime Antetokounmpo sidekick, holds a player option and can become a free agent, while Budenholzer contributed to a comedy of errors that are increasingly hard to ignore.

“There’s a ton of disappointment when your season ends, no matter how it happens,” Budenholzer said. “It’s a hard feeling, a disappointing feeling. I believe in and trust those guys. We’ve all got to be better.”

Unfortunately, this is a feeling that Milwaukee knows all too well. Antetokounmpo posted 38 points and 20 rebounds in Game 5, but his biggest weaknesses resurfaced, as he missed 13 free throws, committed seven turnovers and failed to capitalize in overtime even though Bam Adebayo, Kevin Love and Kyle Lowry had all fouled out. What’s more, Antetokounmpo fouled Max Strus while he was shooting a three-pointer in the final minute of the extra period, a careless sequel to his game-deciding foul of Butler in the Bubble.

Milwaukee blew a 16-point lead with a fourth-quarter drought, just one game after it had blown a 15-point lead with a late-game collapse. Butler scored a game-high 42 points, including an incredible off-balance inbounds lob to tie the game in the final second of regulation, just one game after he had scored a postseason franchise-record 56 points.

Budenholzer, long known for his stubborn adherence to his coaching principles, couldn’t find a way to inject any flow into Milwaukee’s offense, and he stood by as Butler nuked his team’s season. The Bucks assigned Holiday, a world-class defender, to Butler, but they made little effort to trap the ball out of the Miami star’s hands and never bothered to try Antetokounmpo as the primary defender. Even Antetokounmpo, who prides himself on his loyalty and rarely points the finger at anyone but himself, publicly acknowledged that the Bucks didn’t make enough defensive adjustments.

“Jrue did his best, man,” Antetokounmpo said. “But at the end of the day, he gets tired. He’s got to rebound the ball, pass the ball, score the ball, guard Jimmy. He gets tired. Maybe we could have double-teamed more and tried to make him pass the ball. Maybe switch the matchup for a little bit and give Jrue a break for two or three minutes. I don’t think as a team we made the right [adjustments], or we didn’t make as many adjustments as we could against him. … I wish I could guard [Butler] more.”

Milwaukee’s 2021 title earned Budenholzer a contract extension, but it shouldn’t grant him lifetime immunity. Budenholzer admitted that he forgot to call a timeout to set up a potential game-winner at the end of regulation, and the Bucks didn’t even manage to get a shot off on their final possession of overtime. On Butler’s breathtaking lob, Budenholzer subbed out center Brook Lopez to match up with a smaller lineup, a decision that played into Miami’s hands because Milwaukee had no big men in position to defend the basket area.

These are the little things that decide games and end seasons, and the list keeps growing. During Budenholzer’s five-year tenure, which represents the franchise’s longest sustained stretch of regular season success, golden opportunities have repeatedly slipped through Milwaukee’s grasp in the playoffs. In addition to the two Heat upsets, the Bucks blew a 2-0 lead to the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 Eastern Conference finals and a 3-2 series lead against the Boston Celtics last year. Nick Nurse, the former Raptors coach who outfoxed Budenholzer en route to the 2019 title, happens to be a free agent.

“This team has incredibly high expectations,” Budenholzer said. “[General Manager] Jon Horst has put together an amazing roster. The ownership has done what they’re supposed to do. We made a push and were the No. 1 seed, but all that matters is the playoffs.”

Antetokounmpo made it clear that he “definitely wants [Middleton] to be my teammate for the next 10 years,” but added that the 31-year-old forward must do what’s “best for him and his family.” Middleton started just 19 games this season, a fact that surely contributed to Milwaukee’s offensive woes in the playoffs. Even so, a hefty new contract for Middleton would bring some complications, as the Bucks were already struggling to scrounge together a supporting cast with their current commitments to Antetokounmpo, Middleton and Holiday.

The most important chip, of course, is the 28-year-old Antetokounmpo, who has two years left on his contract before he can become a free agent. The two-time MVP doubled down on his commitment to Milwaukee after its poor showing in the Bubble, and he took a similar approach Wednesday, trying to keep a level head in the wake of a gutting defeat.

“Michael Jordan played 15 years and won six championships,” Antetokounmpo said. “The other nine years were a failure? … There’s no failure in sports. There’s good days and bad days. Some days you are able to be successful, and some days you’re not. Some days it’s your turn, and some days it’s not. That’s what sports is about. You don’t always win.”

That’s an incredibly mature sentiment, but one that only glances at the truth. The Bucks won’t always win, but Antetokounmpo surely knows they should be winning more than this.