Does the NBA Have it Out for the Milwaukee Bucks?

So, do we really believe the NBA has something against the Milwaukee Bucks?

Yes.

Okay, now that we have that out of the way, allow me to elaborate on why exactly the NBA has it out for the Milwaukee Bucks and small-market teams. With such a serious issue of leagues punishing small market teams while turning a blind eye to large-market teams, it’s important to go over the facts. So, that is exactly what I will be doing today. As you read along, I think your opinion may change if you do not believe the NBA has a grudge against small markets. Let’s take a look at the facts.

Inconsistent Rules Around the League

The NBA has continuously turned a blind eye to cases of tampering when it comes to large-market teams. In the case of the Los Angeles Lakers, Lebron James had the same agent as superstar Anthony Davis. Davis was on the Pelicans, and the Pelicans front office seemed to believe that he wanted to get out of New Orleans via trade. Lebron James used his connection with Rich Paul, his and Anthony Davis’ agent, to lure Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers. While the Pelicans could have denied the trade because they did not want to trade Davis to another Western Conference team, the deal came through. Anthony Davis and Lebron James is now a dynamic duo in Los Angeles. The pair went on to win the 2020 championship in the Orlando bubble.

In the case of the Brooklyn Nets, there were rumors spreading that they were going to pursue superstar Kevin Durant in free agency. However, just moments after free agency opened, Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets had a deal that was agreed to. Clearly, it is nearly impossible to work out a contract in just minutes after free agency opened. Although most NBA fans noticed that it was a little odd how the contract was already agreed to before free agency began, it was quickly dismissed.

The Milwaukee Bucks and Bogdanovic Scandal

Now how do those two instances correlate to the NBA being biased towards large-market teams? The Milwaukee Bucks were prepared to land former Sacramento Kings guard Bogdan Bogdanovic in a sign-and-trade deal. The NBA said that this was a violation of the rules preventing tampering because both teams were working out contract details before free agency began. The NBA threatened the Bucks with fines and a loss of a draft pick. To avoid penalties, the Bucks pulled out of the trade. However, the league still handed the Bucks the penalty of a loss of a draft pick. The question is, why were these same actions not taken against the Brooklyn Nets? Now, this deal falling through may not have been the worst thing to happen as I wrote about in my previous article. However, it shows how blatantly the NBA turns a blind eye to other acts of tampering.

Blown Call Against Brooklyn Nets

The Bucks and the Nets, the two favorites in the Eastern Conference, squared off on Monday night. In a close game, the Bucks fell by a final score of 123-125. It was an entertaining game, but it did not come without some controversy at the end. After Kevin Durant lost the handle on the ball with less than 10 seconds left, Khris Middleton began immediately calling for a timeout. However, the clock kept winding down as he was calling time out, and the Bucks lost about three seconds of time. Obviously, three seconds is very important in a two point game. As you can see in the video below, Middleton begins calling timeout with 6.3 seconds left on the game clock. The clock does not stop until there are 3.5 seconds left. It is still unclear why the referees could not go to replay and add time back on the clock. Here is the footage of the blown call by the referees on Monday night:

Thoughts… should Milwaukee have had more time added on the clock here? pic.twitter.com/24lVtY6rsb

— ProCity Hoops (@ProCityHoops) January 19, 2021

Conclusion

The answer seems pretty simple based on what I have shown here. It is important to keep in mind that there are many more examples, but this article would take about an hour to read if I were to list all of them. In short, yes, the NBA seems to have some kind of grudge against the Milwaukee Bucks and small-market teams. It is unfortunate, but it is a grim reality to recognize that money really does rule the world, and sometimes even sports leagues.

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