The Milwaukee Bucks haven’t finished the regular season below the fourth spot since the 2017-2018 season, the time when Giannis Antetokounmpo was not yet a season MVP contender.
They finished seventh at that time although they pushed the second seed Boston Celtics to the limit before bowing out of the first round.
The streak might end this season as they are currently sitting in the sixth spot, 2.5 games away from the fourth spot currently occupied by the Indiana Pacers. They are trailing the Detroit Pistons by 1.5 games.
Their most recent loss was against the New York Knicks, a potential playoff match.
There are only nine games left and the mood in the Bucks community is not that great.
They have lost three straight and were 4-8 in their last 12. The worsts part of it all is that they might enter the postseason without their second top scorer Damian Lillard who has been diagnosed with DVT and is out indefinitely.
Can they turn things around?
Giannis Antetokounmpo insists anything can happen in the playoffs
Antetokounmpo and the Bucks have been on the wrong end of monumental upsets in the playoffs history.
That is what he is holding on to as they navigate the remaining games in the regular season.
“The last six years I have been, I think three times the No. 1 team in the East, No. 1 team in the NBA,” Antetokounmpo said.
“I’ve been twice, I think, third. I’ve been one time fourth. It doesn’t really matter. I’ve played against Toronto in the Eastern Conference finals (in 2019) and in the regular season we beat them 4-0, or 3-0, they never beat us. We were the No. 1 seed in the East and we lost from Miami, that was the No. 8 seed and they went all the way to the finals (in 2023).”
However, he is aware that it is not as easy as that. To him, they should take care of the last remaining games first among other things. They also need to improve their mentality and remain healthy during the build up to the postseason.
“Like, at the end of the day, the only thing I think about is we have the regular season, nine games left, and then we have two months to change our lives,” he explained.
“That’s pretty much it. You gotta lock in two months, and stay healthy, and go out there and compete. That’s all you gotta think about.”
The Bucks will return to action on Sunday against the Atlanta Hawks.
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