How the Milwaukee Bucks scrapped a contender, refused to rebuild ... then somehow turned out great
Okay, so this Collapse has a punchline, which is that the Milwaukee Bucks won it all in 2021. But that outcome only makes the era preceding it more compelling. The prior very-good Bucks team took the league by storm in 2001. They almost made it to the Finals ... and then fell very hard very fast. The demolition of that "Big Three," and the years of losing (but not rebuilding) that followed are worth exploring.
Written and produced by Seth Rosenthal
Directed and edited by Jiazhen Zhang
Motion graphics by Michael Das
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Watching this collapse truly puts in perspective how Giannis’ arrival to the Bucks was straight out of a film script
His entire career is a film script. A skinny kid from Greece (no basketball powerhouse) who came from poverty, had little to no basketball experience, played a few okay-subpar season in Europe, somehow became a lottery pick, and went on to be arguably the most dominant player in the NBA.
I’ve been a lifelong Bucks fan. I remember the night they drafted Giannis, and absolutely nobody in our fanbase knew how to pronounce this young, skinny, 18 year old’s name. I remember seeing comments on the team’s official draft post that said, “The bucks just proved how hopeless the franchise is with this absolutely worthless pick” and that “This is stupid they needed a guard, should’ve drafted Allen Crabbe!”
@@jack90054 Greece is actually pretty good at basketball, with two of its clubs having plenty of euroleague championships. It's weird that more greek players aren't in the NBA, but understandable. Would you rather start from the bottom in America, treated as a scrub, or stay famous at home? That's a hard question.
Atlanta had a secret pre draft workout and were gonna take him but Milwuakee had pick before them.
@@JWex-jy7sk Tbf, draft day Giannis and current Giannis are two very different players. It's one of Giannis' best qualities, his ability and willingness to constantly improve his game. He's too skinny, so he bulked up. He was bad at the line, so he practiced and improved (now a career 70% FT shooter). The league now requires bigs to shoot 3s, so he went and got a serviceable 3-point shot.
Had 2021 not happened, this would be another log into Milwaukee's sad history in sports after Kareem left. As a Wisconsinite, I'm glad that we've had championships in this century.
A Wisconsinite? 🤣 I don't even like the way that sounds! Just because y'all call yourselves that, y'all deserve NO MORE CHAMPIONSHIPS! 🤣
@@stephenyoho6024 u from Minnesota? Or Illinois? U hatin for no reason my guy 😭
Our Packers should have 4 super bowls though I'd take away all the bucks success for that
@@stephenyoho6024 you the kid that reminds the teacher about the homework
@@HAA0603 I'm from Texas. Doesn't what I say sound like it's coming from a guy that is shocked you call yourselves that because I've never heard it before? Lol So how would me being from a state that borders y'all, who obviously knows that's what y'all call yourselves, make any sense? 🤣
And... Who got chills at the end when Seth mentioned future AS Khris Middleton, and future multi-MVP, FMVP, and sure thing HOFer in Giannis? I did
It put a big smile on my face
@@OldAfrobeats I was like s--- these are my guys! Hope they'll be split by retirement, but not now.
@@melenzoferrer4786 Fr bro, it’s like something out of a stereotypical sports movie😂
it was so awesome after all that mess. we know the rest of the story
@@OldAfrobeats That 20-year stretch was like a movie.
Rock bottom just to back to the top! Giannis really worked hard for his franchise
This is collapsed Team , Rebuild Team And Champion Team G.A 34, Khris 22 and Jrue @Secretbase
Absolute erasure of Middleton, there since the beginning, and the Jrue acquisition?
Khris deserves as much credit man. Seriously, Giannis knows that.
@@glst1974 I Know That too since birth hehehehe
@@dusk6159 He wasn't even a Bucks draft pick tbf, Giannis is the franchise
From Allen to Giannis. I’m here for it. I remember the Bucks in the early 00s but like them more now for obvious reasons.
From one legendary 34 and up and coming 22 to a all time 34 and dope ass 22 lol
bandwagon lol
gay
@@angelusgnz5784 salty bulls FIB spotted. Get wrecked by grayson allen lmao. United center was a funeral home sheeesh!
@@billybobby5247 😂😂😂 this was actually funny
The good ole days of David Stern's NBA where he used officiating to keep small market teams out of the Finals. Portland, Sacramento, and Milwaukee were the prime examples.
That Sacramento series against lakers hurt.
Then small market teams who lost in the conference finals may have gone the furthest they could.
Exactly that BS suspension and all those calls
Explain the spurs and nets lol
Hey idiot!!!! Explain why the Spurs, Nets, Cavaliers, and Pistons made the Finals in the 2000s.
When the Bucks won the championship last year (20-21) as the celebrations were starting I said to myself, "thank you John Hammond." It was Hammond who drafted Giannis and traded for Middleton and Hammond having come over from Detroit was a breath of fresh air in a dormant and dismal team. Thanks also to Herb Kohl for keeping the team here, otherwise the Las Vegas Bucks would be NBA world champs.
I can see why they even made a ring for him as well.
Hammond did assemble the core in Milwaukee and he did assemble a solid 2010 Bucks team as well (could’ve been a 50 win team if Micheal Redd was still in his prime) He’s doing a decent job with the Magic. Y’all truly had a Gem even if he left y’all dirty
Why did I see this as very funny lol
@@sawyertuide7636Hammond proved to be awful at free agency signings. Drafting Giannis and trading for Khris saved what little legacy he had. Horst built the rest of the championship team around them.
You never said that you liar
This is the THIRD time Sam Cassel has been in a collapse First Houston Rockets collapse, then the Timberwolves collapse, now the Bucks
Four, since in the Kings collapse he was briefly a part of it (as the Kings played against the Twolves in the 2004 series)
Man just can’t catch a break lol I guess the three rings he’s got kinda make up for it
Sam Cassell had one of the strangest, most successful and underrated journeyman NBA careers I know of. He started his career with 2 rings in Houston and ended it with 1 in Boston. In between, he played in the playoffs in 8 different years with 4 different teams. He was only named an all-star once, but he amassed more win shares over his NBA career than anybody else in his 1993 draft class, including Hall-of-Famer Chris Webber.
I guess it makes sense though , you only can be apart of a collapse if you also were at one point apart of something great . It speaks to the highs of his creer that he's been in the pit on the lows that can come afterward too .
Moral of the story: keep Sam Cassell at all costs
I’ll always say that the Bucks clearly got screwed in the eastern conference finals in 2001. The league definitely wanted LA vs Philly instead of LA vs lil ol Milwaukee.
2001 & 2002 playoffs confirmed to many fans that the snake Stern was rigging the league.
don't forget Portland WCF against LA game 7. So many phantom calls and no calls in that series, everyone just LOVES to fixate on the 13 consecutive missed shots but never fail to mention how the Lakers shot 21 more free throws than the Blazers and the referees seemingly would not blow the whistle on the Lakers down the stretch as the game was still in reach for the Blazers. Anyone paying attention should know and realize that the NBA was/has been fixed for decades to maximize profits and increase revenues while continuously expand the leagues reach and draw.
@Fries easily. Milwaukee actually swept LA in the regular season IIRC
@@danielschomburg2140 while all that is true the blazers didn’t do themselves any favors by jacking shots instead of attacking the basket
@@danielschomburg2140 bro I never said it wasn’t rigged relax ain’t that serious
I was born in 2001. This team is my life. I’ve sat through what seemed like an endless spiral. Then one person just fell in our lap and turned our entire franchise around. Great Video
Lmfao. You have sat through nothing.
@@charismatic9904 2019 losing to the raptors being 2-0 up was crushing.
@@shadeeptapokharel8052 lmao. U kids have no idea what true pain and suffering with a franchise is.
@@charismatic9904 let me guess, Kings fan?
Don't forget when the bucks traded bogut to the warriors and had the choice between monta Ellis and Steph Curry 🤦🤦🤦
Herb Kohl did all he could to keep us from becoming Seattle before Seattle became OKC. His stubborness kept Milwaukee an NBA town.
If Herb Kohl was a better owner, the team could have had chances to be better.
@@dirtylaundry022 coulda shoulda woulda. He worked with what he had. He knew even money wouldn't attract big free agents to Milwaukee. Hell, the current bucks squad still doesn't attract big time free agents and that's ok. Sound organizational structure is more important than throwing money down a pit.
@@pabloguerreromunoz sound organizational structure!?!?? You mean the garbage GM and head coach you just watched the video on right? Did we watch the same video??
@@dirtylaundry022 the Bucks were a middle of the pack team most years. To say they were garbage is ludicrous. These videos over dramatize for sensationalism. Don't be a dummy. They had one truly horrible season but were mostly stuck in the middle.
@@pabloguerreromunoz middle of the pack, aka not good enough to win. I'm not convinced you actually were a fan, followed the team, or even watched the video. Herb Kohl clearly only cared about his own pocket book of being semi good and put 0 money into this team. Our practice facility was a CHURCH BASEMENT. In case you just conveniently forgot that. I think we just watched a different video, or lived in a different universe of expectations. If you wanted a team that lined its own pockets and never wanted to ACTUALLY win a title, then sure. Herb was the perfect owner for you. Not for me. Don't @ me again
As a lifelong Bucks fan, this perfectly puts in perspective what a once in a lifetime gift from the basketball gods Giannis is. Not to mention the absolute SQUAD this front office has surrounded him with in the form of the GREAT Jrue Holiday, Khris Middleton and all the rest. #fearthedeer #greekfreak
@zuygj bnsv dude saved the franchise. Toronto tried so hard to trade into that draft to take him too. Masai knew he had the potential
LET'S GOOO MILWAUKEE!!
I would go through 20 more years of drought for giannis. Not just a great player, but wonderful man.
Bobby bobby bobby!
@@boingfwip6440 Hell yes
Has George Karl ever gotten along with any team he's coached? Like for a guy who spent all his time around basketball players he didn't seem to like them very much.
He’s insecure
The only team that liked him was the Sonics with Payton and Kemp era.
He’s the reason Melo went to New York.
He’s insufferable
He's a pain in the ass but the Sonics played exquisitely good defense. God that trapping!
Cassell played on so many great teams in import roles always. both Rocket chips, this team, 04 T-Wolves, '06 Clippers, '08 Celtics
Not to mention being an assistant coach for the Lob City/Kawhi PG Clippers and the 76ers. Can’t forget that he was a big part of my Wizards when they started to get decent.
Also the 98' resurgent Nets and these Bucks
Sam Cassell is the Forrest Gump of basketball.
Although they weren't really talked about here Bogut, Jennings, and Sanders were huge for the development of the culture here in MKE. Bogut paid for a section of the Bradley Center to stand and cheer for the whole game, Jennings popularized the "Fear the Dear" and "Bucks in 6" slogans, and Sanders played with his heart and emotion on his sleeve to one of the best interior defensive seasons. They gave a lot of fans reasons to cheer even when we were suffering as a franchise, and Giannis was the ultimate generational talent to finally give us a championship (since 71), along with his supporting cast.
Giannis Antetokounmpo Did His Part In The Deal
Been a Bucks fan since the late 80s/early 90s. I wept like a baby when they finally won the championship last year. It was truly a thing of beauty.
You could have also included the fact that Darvin Ham was a Buck on that 2001 team, who would later become the head assistant coach on the 2021 team that won it all.
Sam Cassell is one of two players to feature in 4 collapse videos (Rockets - Traded, Kings - Twolves series, Twolves- Protagonist, and Bucks-Protagonist) The other of the two? Robert Horry (Spurs in Suns collapse, Lakers in Kings collapse, Lakers in Bucks collapse, and Rockets collapse when traded)
Big Shot Bob actually is present in 5 Collapse videos - you've missed the Pistons' episode during the 2005 NBA Finals
Robert “The Albatross” Horry
And Dikembe Mutombo is in every video.
@Fries you mean his nba career or as gollum in Lord of the Rings
As a Bucks fan, born in the 90s, raised, & still living in Milwaukee to this day, it's been a long journey to get to this point. It sucked watching us lose in 2001 & possibly getting cheated, & then expecting to still be good after that season. We sucked for so long after. I always tell people, it sucks hovering around the 6th-12th seed every year, because you're never going to get a good draft pick in that range & if you happen to make the playoffs, you're not going to go far anyways. I feel like the Kings are currently going through what we went through. I honestly think it's better to just keep tanking, get a top draft pick, similar to what the 76ers have done. The Bucks, we just got lucky with Giannis, we actually suck at drafting, if you noticed he's the only one that panned out. To get out of that terrible middle-level (6th-12th seed) phase though, you really have to just tank. Lol
As a Kings fan who hasnt seen them in the playoffs since age 7, the difference is that we do get good picks a lot of the time, but management screws them. Marvin Bagley? Willie Cauley-Stein? Ben Maclmore? All terrible top 8 picks. I'm hopeful about the future, but I can absolutely empathize with you guys. We suck 😅
@@davidkirker8937 Yeah, you guys do actually get good picks lol. The sucky thing is, I think we both got cheated in those earlier 2000's playoffs, that was during the betting scandals too, where Referee Tim Donaghy was betting on games.
Younger Bucks fan here, but this video was straight up awesome. Captures the past 20 years pretty perfectly
Yeah the kings really did get cheated, but never left hell
Problem is that even after tanking the 76ers are still just a 4th seed and will likely not get past the second round. Drafting a superstar like Giannis is like finding a diamond in the rough. Similar to how The Warriors drafted Curry. Neither were even top 5 picks so tanking doesn't necessarily make you a better team. I mean the Kings have been getting lottery picks for the past 20 years with nothing to show for it. At the end of the day there just are no guarantees to a team getting better. I personally think it all starts with good management who hire people that only care about winning. As a Raptors fan it was nice seeing the Bucks win a championship. You guys have had a similar torturous 20 years. We wernt even good enough to be the 6th seed most of that time. And we drafted so terribly. I mean we really drafted Andrea Bargnani #1 overall!!! But once we got good management in Masai everything changed. He made sure to only hire people who want to win. And I feel the same about the Bucks. Their management did an excellent job drafting and putting a championship team together.
It's Amazing just how much Giannis saved this team
Sam Cassell had a great career that no one really talks about. His first two seasons he won 2 championships while his last season he won his last championship!
The legendary poet Jadakiss once said it best: "That I'mma get Bucks like Milwaukee, cause like Sam, I ca' sell."
I always believed Sam Cassell was always better than Kenny Smith
Love our team now but will always remember the days from glenn and ray to redd, to jennings ellis and sanders✊️
Might be a biased spectator, but I saw it as Glenn/Ray, Redd/Bogut and the Jennings-Ellis never quite fit eras. Redd/Bogut felt like a what if itself with Redd's knee and Bogut's arm. I don't think they championship, but if they don't happen, you probably trade ECF then for a chip with Giannis/Middleton.
@@blackjacktrial I think Redd/Bogut era could've been like that 46-36 "Fear the Deer" 2009-10 team, except winning a round and getting as far as the 7th game in the next. Alas, this pattern will grow tiresome, and then...who knows? The Robinson/Allen/Cassell era had the team highlighted here, but even when they weren't Finals contenders I thought they were fun to watch. Big Dog was criticized for being shot happy (unwarranted; guys who can score better score, as not every player can) & bad defense (that one's mostly true), but as a #1 overall he was no legend, but not a bust either. Anyway, Ray Allen, and him worked well enough together, Sam Cassell came in to run things, and the roster filled out from there. I just remember the 2001-02 Bucks being 36-24 thinking, "Well, they can do better than that". Not only did they NOT do better than that, they did worse!
As a Milwaukee native, I thank you for waiting until we can look back at this from the top. I still love that 2001 team.
This brought tears in my eyes.... finally a collapse with a happy ending
I was born in 1999, and Michael Redd was probably my favorite player growing up. It was amazing how he could always splash a 3 so casually. I was too young to watch Ray Allen and his highlights, but that 2014 season man... I went to one of the games they somehow won at the Bradley Center, probably because the tickets were dirt cheap. I still remember seeing Giannis's name and struggling to pronounce it. Chemistry goes a long way, and I'm happy we have Middleton and Giannis
Herb Kohl will never receive enough praise for what he did for the city of Milwaukee. He is an absolute legend.
Yup. They might not have won a championship during his tenure but without him, Milwaukee likely doesn't have a team at all.
I think the prolonged standing ovation he got when he received his ring last October was a good start.
@@chriskay1449 That was nice.
The team could have competed more wihout him and has now thrived for much longer without him. The best thing he did was sell the team and hold onto it for somone not to move it.
Abd the most important thing he kept on pushing and pushing
I really like the way seth narrated the whole collapse which leads to a bright future of the bucks....love the collapse and rewinder series especially when seth is the one narrating....
when you think about it, giannis is in the running for greatest nba draft pick of all time
There's a strong argument for it
He was drafted 15th overall. That''s not terribly low. I think someone like Ginobli or Jokic (both 2nd round picks who far outperformed their expected value) have a better claim to that title.
@@tmage23 joker for sure considering he won mvp already. If he ever wins a ring too that would pretty much solidify it
Im sorry thats Jokic he was a 2nd round pick and turned into a back to back mvp thats the best draft pick of all time
yep, he's got my vote.
As a Warriors fan I just love this story and I love how Giannis and Khris Middleton came out of nowhere and put this team on the map again, so happy for the Bucks organization, they’re fans and Giannis and Middleton that they got their long awaited and well deserved ring. This is an inspiring story to never give up no matter how hard times get.
and, some Pistons fans kick themselves for handing Middleton over to a division rival, while the front office and coach gave Josh Smith the green light to shoot threes.
Their
I've loved the Bucks growing up in the 90s...and this video emphasizes and helps me to re-live 3 main things. 1) Karl and Kohl really blew it with that young and talented team...they gave up way too quickly. 2) That Sixers ECF series was shambolic and the officiating was straight out of David Sterns "How to Grow the League" handbook. 3) Thank GOD for Giannis, Khris, and the new owners. I gotta say, I never thought I'd see this day...but going through the garbage years of mediocrity makes these "good" years so much sweeter! Thanks for doing this video and giving the Bucks some attention.
As a Bucks fan, those early 2000s teams were so fun to watch! Ultimately, it ended up being yet another example of George Karl ruining a promising franchise. The day we traded Ray will forever be burned in my brain. And what made it worse, having to watch an older Gary Payton, who clearly didn’t want to be in Milwaukee
Me too! although watching Desmon Mason dunk was cool in my youth, I like winning more now and Toni was a fun fan favorite.
Ray Allen wanted out of Milwaukee from day one.. Karl was an ass but this wasn't all the fault of management. Milwaukee is not a desirable place for the type of people who become NBA stars..
If Bucks' had Larry Brown on the bench and Philly had George Karl, Bucks' defeat Sixers.
Yeah I remember arguing with someone that it was a stupid trade, their take was we have Redd we don't need Allen, I'm like we can have them both.
Desmond Mason became a fan favorite and even came back to Milwaukee after being traded later, but that trade should have never happened. I was a kid when that happened and I couldn't understand it then, just as I can't understand it now.
I was wondering when this was gonna happen. The pain of losing Ray Allen still haunts me. As a Wisconsin Sports fan, this is one of those moments that will forever hurt. 4th and 26, 14 Championship, 01 ECF, 95 NFC Championship and then this. Pain. George Karl ruined a championship caliber team. And honestly if that team even made the finals, they had a really good chance to win. They swept Shaq and Kobe that year. It would have been a great series.
I'm a Sixers fan, and I honestly had forgotten about all the drama with the refs in the 2001 ECF. I will say that the Bucks really should have beaten us. You guys absolutely were more talented, and just better top to bottom. You guys wouldn't have beaten the 2001 Lakers (probably the best of the Shaq/Kobe title teams, 15-1 in the playoffs....Sixers game 1 win over them was the only loss they had. But, it would've been a better Series with you guys, bucks would've pushed them to 6.....and maybe 7, but no one was beating LA that year especially), but, it would've been cool seeing that team vs. Shaq and Kobe. The Ray Allen trade still befuddles me. What made it worse was that NEITHER the Sonics or Bucks benefited from that deal. The Sonics had one good season with Ray, and GP was basically cooked when he got to Milwaukee, and pairing him with Cassel made no sense. Not to mention he bolted for the Lakers after half a season with MIL.
@@elliemyers6435 yea losing Ray Allen really did nothing for either Milwaukee or Seattle. I guess (like the video said) they wanted to make Michael Redd be the center piece. Course he was nowhere near as good as Ray. It’s one of those moments that will live in infamy. I mean Ray liked Milwaukee. He said “Milwaukee is not a big market but you can create that here. Utah did it with Karl Malone and John Stockton. Green Bay has done it with Brett Favre.″ He felt he could have made a great team in Milwaukee and wanted to be there. So for Karl to blow it up was very disappointing and basically ruined the Bucks for a decade.
True Dom2k pointed this out.
@@tempest20000 Absolutely. George Karl is known to ruin stuff, and he really ruined the early 2000s Bucks. That team REALLY had such a good nucleus and could've been a real player in the east had it stayed together. And as you & I have both said, it's crazy that the Ray Allen deal was bad for BOTH Seattle and Milwaukee. The Sonics had one good season with Ray, and completely bottomed out after 2007 & then shipped him to boston (That DID yield them KD, which was great, but sadly, the owner screwed the franchise and moved them to OKC), and honestly, the Bucks never really recovered after that trade. Redd was a good player, but nowhere near as good as Ray. It really did seem like Ray liked Milwaukee, so for them to ship him out because of Karl was such a travesty. Your guys draft history is wild. Bogut, who was a good player, but not a franchise one, made sense, because TJ really had a good start to his career, but the injury reduced him so much, then guys like Yi, who was not very good, and never wanted to play in Milwaukee, Joe Alexander, who just couldn't play, John Henson, who was a role player, and even Jabari Parker, who was supposed to be this savior, was also essentially a role player. Then, Giannis comes and transforms into truly a freak, who has carried you guys into contention. It's almost like divine intervention brought him to Milwaukee, after so many seasons of mediocrity, here comes this insane, unknown talent, that's committed and fully all in for the Bucks. So awesome.
No way in hell they beat Kobe and Shaq lol. Regular season means nothing
Collapse: how the Tony Gwynn Padres fell apart into nothing after his retirement Collapse: how the killer bees Houston astros went from miracle World Series appearance to a decade long drought Beef history: George Steinbrenner vs Billy Martin Rewinder: the miracle of Istanbul Collapse: how the two time cup winning Colorado avalanche broke apart Collapse: how a legendary AC Milan team broke apart into nothing after being Champions league favorites for years Collapse: how inter Milan broke apart into nothing after winning a treble Rewinder: the bills giants Super Bowl Rewinder: bob nystrom’s cup winning goal in 1980 that kickstarted the NY islanders dynasty of the 80s Untitled: Ted Williams Untitled: pavel Bure Collapse: how the teemu selane Anaheim ducks went from champions, to game 7 chokers
Collapse: The Foxes Leicester City wins for first time in premier league 2015/16 season got Fall after the players want trade to another teams and never comeback for the champions league/Europa League ever.
They gotta do a moment in history on Suarez handball versus Ghana
Rewinder: 2005 World Series Game 2: Scott Podsednik homers off of Brad Lidge in the ninth
Collapse: Legion of Boom or Post-Peyton Manning Broncos, or even Post-SB 47 Ravens
Rewinder: Alec Martinez scores the goal of the century
I kinda wish this touched on their rise... the Bucks were a team on the upswing in the late 90s and had a couple close call first playoffs, where they were just a little short, the move to bring in Cassell was big, the Allen trade was big (to bring him in), it makes the collapse all the more heart breaking because they were building something special and it fell apart so fast. Dad was a season ticket holder from the mid 90s into the early 2000s... last Bucks games I ever went to with him were in the 2001 playoff run.
Having been a sixers fan all my life I can honestly say I'm so happy for the lifelong bucks fans. They were down and out, stuck with their team, and made it to the mountaintop.
Wisconsin is pretty good on sticking it out for their teams. Sometimes to a fault (coughFavrecough)
This video is definitely for all of us loyal day one Bucks fans. We've had so many bad seasons & watched so many bad moves. How did they not mention that we could've had Steph Curry. He just talked about it on Draymond's podcast. It was understandable at the time given his ankle injury history but knowing we could've had the Splash brothers since Klay was the player they picked with our pick is insane to think about. Even finding out that we drafted Dr. J back in 71 after our 1st title is beyond crazy! But just being able to experience our rise in the last few years to becoming champs has been all worth it & it's so fun to watch.
Day one? Talk like a human
Growing up a bucks fan I’d hear stories about the 01 Bucks. I didn’t think we’d ever get back to those heights. It was just so cathartic watching Giannis grow into an all time great and finally getting to the top of the mountain.
They picked him without serious expectations, they made a development plan for him, and he took the franchise on his back. Bucks+Giannis what a story!
Nah the GM said after drafting him we have something special, I don't like saying things like all star putting pressure on a young kid like that but that is in play.
Wrong. They absolutely did have serious expectations for him.
Being a native to the Brew City I remember clearly those years, when you could go to bucks games at the Bradley Center as a last minute thing to go do with friends because the tickets were cheap. (Same thing with the Brewers before Braun, Prince and Corey Hart revitalized a middling team). I love that hard hard headedness in an organization have created a team that the city can be proud of again. #FeartheDeer 🦌
I kinda miss the BC- a windowless hockey arena that just kinda had basketball going on inside it
Yep I remember buying super cheap tickets while at UWM for bucks games. Tickets use to be $25 for 20 rows off the floor. I remember seeing Karl ride his huffy bike. I also remember talking to Bruce Pearl at halftime of UWM men's game, I was changing in the locker room, he wanted make sure I wasn't spy for other team.
I was making like 0 money in 2014 but I went to a bunch of games for $5 and easily moved down to the lower bowl for the second half. I distinctly remember a Sunday afternoon bobcats game where I swear there were only a couple hundred people there. That team was so universally injured except for the young guys, and all those Khris and Giannis minutes reaped benefits later.
As a Raptors fan we've had some epic playoff battles against the Bucks in the Giannis era. I was happy for Bucks fans when they won the Championship in 2021.
They’ve. You weren’t on the team you loser
Giannis is probably the greatest dark horse draft pick ever. His work ethic and just him as a person is a gift from the basketball gods.
Jokic.
@@vladsaint6344u can like both players , it’s ok …
As a life long Bucks fan, this is a walk down memory lane of my childhood
hell yes!
Me too man. I remember people in MKE during those down years would only try and get tickets to games where the Bucks were playing against a superstar. Giannis came in and all that changed.
I can hear the old FS WI theme song and the voices of McGlocklin and Paschke playing in my head
One of the greatest stories ever told about resilience and doing things the right way professionally.
Michael Redd is still one of my All-time favorites
I'll always remember how puzzling that Allen for GP trade was. I wasn't much of a fan then, but as someone who follows the NBA, that trade made no sense at all! Thanks goodness they righted their ship and got some talent they could develop in Giannis and K-Midd.
IT was all George Karl. He loved Gary Payton. Karl set the franchise back over a decade with his BS.
Without Giannis the team would’ve moved out of Milwaukee.
@@OverpoweredByMonk Not true. When Herb Kohl sold the team, a condition of the deal was that the new owners kept the team in Milwaukee. Giannis was irrelevant to that. Building the new arena is what kept the team in town.
@@chriskay1449 yeah I remember all that being the main sticking point but even at that time I felt like if they hadn’t had Giannis and the team was still doing as poorly as they were when they won 15 games that the team would’ve been sold. Obviously Giannis was part of that 15 win team but it was the promise he showed that made them really put in the effort to get the space and funding for the new arena.
@@OverpoweredByMonk Gov Scott Walker was huge on the arena front as he made a major commitment to get all sides(Bucks, City, County and State) to sit down and hash out a deal even when CIty and County leaders opposed him politically. A very unusual level of bipartisanship.
While the Bucks were refusing to rebuild and getting stuck with mid-late lottery picks, the Sixers were in the Process of an all out tank and drafting in the top three. Somehow the Bucks scooped up a title first, with a non-lottery first-rounder and a second-rounder leading the way. I think the lesson is that NBA GMs are seriously overpaid.
Or Kohl should have paid more attention to his trash team. Or hired someone to better pay attention to the team for hkm.
I distinctly remember Khris, included in the Jennings Knight trade as salary filler, being described to me by a pistons fan as “more useless than the H in his first name”.
@@flyingscotsman32 who would have thought khris would be a better player than ballhog jennings and brandon broken ankles knight?
@@flyingscotsman32 Pistons had no idea how to use him lmao
@@flyingscotsman32 Never heard that, that's funny. I just remember Jennings for O.J. and some salary filler 2nd rounder who might not make the roster.
Born in 85 and raised in Milwaukee, I've been a long time Bucks fan since my dad and uncle started taking me to Bucks games in the early 90s. Watching this took me back to those days and watching years and years of lackluster to middling basketball. Through it all, I never even thought about jumping ship. I would play with the Bucks on video games just to see them win a title thinking this would be the only way I would see them win it all. Before Herb Kohl sold the team, the Bucks were dangerously close to leaving and I was BEYOND worried. I was almost convinced they were gone! But then suddenly they found buyers committed to keeping the team here, the Bucks FINALLY got a new arena and then this lanky, young, raw kid from Greece arrived in Milwaukee.....the rest is HISTORY! #BucksInSix AND F$&K GEORGE KARL!
Finally, someone who actually watched the video and remembers how bad Herb Kohl was. Preach
I actually forgot until I read your comment that Milwaukee was almost relocated before being sold
Thank God on Giannis, as a Bulls fan who has been obviously disappointed since the great one left, it's nice to see a midwest neighbor getting it done at least.
The Glenn Robinson-Ray Allen era was really a forgotten era of Milwaukee Bucks basketball, to say the least considering that they weren't heard of and talked about (even some rabid Bucks fans could admit to that) over the years before and after their somewhat surprising 2001 Eastern Conference Finals appearance.
Ye Michael redd was like the only thing there that kept people from forgetting the bucks
@@mike04574 Michael Redd definitely and Brandon Jennings to some extent.
Kinda surprised they didn’t mention that they almost upset a Pacers team in 99-00 during the intro. Lost by 1 in the decisive game 5 to the eventual conference champs.
@@flyingscotsman32 Yeah that should have been talked about. I'm a Pacers fan and that series scared me badly and I also knew the Bucks were going to be great the next year. I never seen a team that could shoot like those Bucks can. Prime Ray Allen was bad enough, but they had Sam Cassell one of the greatest mid-range shooters of all time and Glenn Robinson who was really good at mid-range base line shots and corner 3's.
Ray Allen, Carmelo Anthony, Demarcus Cousins. Feels like George Karl always feuded with all his best players.
Being born in 90’s & growing up a bucks fun watching the collapse and miserable basketball years, one can’t understand the impact of Giannis on the city of Milwaukee. Its legendary.
Secret Base feels like a dynasty of great sportswriters and video makers at this point.
The poetry that is the ending of this collapse makes me happy as a sports fan. Giannis and Middleton took time, but they did the damn thing.
I remember seeing Michael Redd holding up the bucks championship trophy. And how happy I was to see him do that. The dude was the only bright spot for the franchise for the longest time. He and Danny Granger just missed out on a fun ride new up and coming stats. How awesome would it be to see a past his prime Redd play with these guys?
The rise, fall and RISE of the Milwaukee Bucks. As a Laker fan, I'd love that 2001 NBA Finals matchup.
Giannis is the best rags to riches story in sports history. I'll love the bucks till the day I die
Really goes to show what great stories Giannis and Middleton are. Two lanky, raw unknown prospects became the catalysts of a championship team.
Bucks fan for 30+ years, just want to say thank you SB for this terrific video. I've been waiting since 2001 to unload all my feelings and opinions about that Bucks team and the decades of ambivalence that followed, but I don't have to since you did it all for me. This is why you're the best sports channel going.
Man, I lived through all of this as a Wisconsinite. “Meh” is the perfect description of this team. It was hard to root for them being so bland for as long as they were. And enduring the 15-win season was an exercise in masochism. It seemed impossible we could win the title, this same franchise that was on the brink of being sold, that had muddled in mediocrity for so long, and then, inexplicably, we did. Giannis saved the Bucks. We owe him everything. And now, here we are. What a feeling. Thanks for putting it all in perspective with this video.
This is EXACTLY what we should all root for as sports fan, franchises scrapping along, not taking shortcuts, not building super teams in free agency, just chipping away until it all comes together.
Man this brought me soo much happiness putting everything in perspective. I wasn't old enough to remember ray Allen but I remember Redd, Jennings, hell even JJ Reddick. God bless Herb Kohl and Giannis
I got goosebumps when Giannis popped onto the screen. The collapse is over!
Milwaukee is an great example in the 2000s that neither trying to remain competitive in “NBA Hell” or tanking always works. Luck plays a huge part in NBA success, and the Bucks lucked out big time with the Giannis pick. Great story for the franchise after so many crap seasons and letdowns.
That ‘01 team was my favorite team ever. They could score at will, and everybody touched the rock.
Man, I could've written this episode from memory alone. Btw, the Bucks were 8-0 against the top 4 teams in the West in 2000-01, so anyone saying they would've gotten trounced by L.A should take a second look. I watched from the 15th row as they held Kobe to 13. Unfortunately, I also watched from that seat the game T.J Ford got carried out on a stretcher too. What's ironic is that the billboard we crowd funded and the pick we pined for through years of irrelevant mediocrity for so long didn't even end up on the Championship roster. For all of Kohl's faults, he made damn sure not to sell to a buyer who would move the team, although if it wasn't for Giannis' budding potential, that buyer may not have ever emerged. The Freak is the true definition of a franchise savior.
I respect herb kohl so much as a bucks fan. Forever grateful to him, that title doesn’t happen without his stubbornness. 65k people were in downtown Milwaukee celebrating together as one last July and it wouldn’t have been possible without that man. Makes me tear up even typing this.
As a Wisconsinite that was born in ‘01, and for most of my life I had never known the Bucks to be good, I had next to no love for my home team. I grew up hearing legends of Kareem, the Big O, and the rest of the 70s Bucks from my mom and Grandma. As well as occasional frustration over trading Dirk for Tractor Traylor, and what could’ve been if we kept Ray too. In elementary school I couldn’t even name a favorite NBA team since I didn’t watch, cause all of Midwest basketball sucked during that time, so I just said the Wizards since the name was funny. No one really talked basketball since the main attraction was the Packers, Favre, Rodgers and a Super Bowl. Even still I remember summer 2013, watching TV in my parents’ room, seeing all the stories about this Greek kid (only 6 years older than me) that we had drafted, all while mom was folding the laundry. Being at the parade while that team, led by that same Greek kid, getting crowned the champions, feels so long ago even though it wasn’t even 10 years. Giannis getting drafted sparked my love of basketball for 12 year old me. Watching teams like the Spurs, Heat, Thunder, Rockets, Cavs and Warriors, hoping one day my Bucks would be among them contending for a title shaped my into the fan I am today. I’m grateful for getting to see Giannis and the Bucks grow from a fringe playoff team that would get clapped by the Bulls, Celtics and Raptors, to being perennial contenders and champs. It’s been quite the journey, and I hope our future stays brighter than our dark past.
It's good to see a team with homegrown talent go from worst to first with the NBA Championship in just seven seasons.
Can't show you guys enough love for these videos. A total rollercoaster of emotions and memories.
I survived 2014 season. Cried my butt last year. Well earned
Need a “Resurrection” series like how they’re now defending champs.
From a lifelong Bucks fan & Milwaukee resident all 43 years of my life, THIS is why 2021 was so special to us. Plus, We almost lost the team AGAIN in 2015. If Fiserv Forum wasn't built, Giannis would currently be a Supersonic. But one thing I disagree with is the 2001 Bucks didn't come out of nowhere, they were they put the scare in Indiana the previous season during that 1/8 playoff matchup, so we as fans kinda figured we were on our way. In 2001 the Bucks were the better matchup for the Lakers instead of Philly but we couldn't get it done 🙄 regardless of the refs or conspiracy theories. 2010 was the "FEAR THE DEER" team that played out of their mind only to lose Bogut to that horrific arm injury at the end of the season. It's so much more I can say as a Bucks fan but as 50 Cent once said...." The top feels so much better than the bottom....So much better 😉
Always gotta wonder if those early 2000 Bucks teams would’ve went somewhere without the biased officiating.
Considering that they're a small market team compared to Philly, obviously the NBA wanted the big market teams to go to the finals. The sad part is that Milwaukee was a good team and had tons of potential at that time.
@@MKISports 50 years earlier,the Bucks Got messy and never win the title championship before predicted has come true against The Suns.
Here's something that people always forget about as well, and one of the biggest what-ifs ever: what if the Bucks hadn't traded Dirk for Tractor Traylor on draft night in '98? They would've ran the East for a decade
They're were 8-0 against the wests top 4 seeds which includes 2-0 against the Lakers. They could have won that series
@@michaelmich7292 They were healthier and had more firepower (a lot more, actually) than the gutty but beat up Sixers. Playoff Lakers were great though, tough call on a different Finals matchup; I would give the Bucks a chance at least though. These Bucks were good (nice job by Big Dog, Cassell, & Ray Allen sharing the basketball, I think that aspect is overlooked).
A few suggestions for future Collapse episodes: Arsenal after 2005 Man United after Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement Sixers after Iverson’s final run San Antonio Spurs after 2014 Miami Heat after 2014 Cavs after 2016 Chicago Bulls after Conference finals run and D Rose MVP reign
Legion of Boom too. Early to mid 2010s Seattle Seahawks
I feel like the fo fi fo sixers would be better
Heat went to the finals again
Sixers from the iverson last run.. to the igudala/ korver years… to the process.. to embiid / current would be 🔥🔥🔥
highkey i want a deep rewind of the bucks from 2014 to that moment against phoenix
I was born and raised in Milwaukee for 20 years. As a LeBron and Lakers fan, I’ve seen a lot of chokes and collapse to each Wisconsin sports team. It’s really crazy and tragic that each team have many chances to win a championship here in Wisconsin. It’s bad that the Packers only have two championships (1996 & 2009) with two half of fame qbs since Bart Starr & Vince Lombardi era ended with three championships in the 60s. It’s bad that the Bucks only had one championship (1971) before surprisingly winning another championship in 2021 led by Giannis, Middleton, Holiday, and his good spotlight teammates and coaching staffs. It’s bad that the Brewers didn’t win none World Series’s one so ever. The only year that they was closed to winning one was in 1982. Rest of before and after year of 1982 we’re history. It’s not too bad that the Badgers had won some titles in other sports but I have to say that it’s bad to see them not win a final four since 1941. That’s been over 80 years since they won that championship. It’s been a long damn time since that. They actually was close to winning another one in 2015 but tiredly felt to Coach K’s juggernaut squad where they were contenders to win that year. Ofc the rest were history. Let me leave Wisconsin a good note. In Summer 2017, I attended a summer youth bucks basketball camp for a week. Guess who showed up to the camp and that was Michael Redd. Michael Redd was very amazed that how good I played basketball. He came over to me after I won and ran 4v4 against the other guys. He gave me a advise. He said, “one day you going to be a great young man that whatever you good at, stay positive and go to the top and not go to the streets”. That was the greatest advice that an former NBA basketball player said to me. I was so amazed of that. He then, gave me his autograph and said thanks for being here. I still was shocked that he actually came on god. I remember that me and him played against each other in Lightning. I almost beat him in that game. I came just two rounds short of winning it all. I was kind of sad that I didn’t beat them, but at the end of the day I was able to a game against him and I was grateful that I play against him. That’s all it matters. What could’ve I asked more from him.
As someone who's been a Bucks fan for much of his entire life and not born in Wisconsin, I can say that Ray Allen is 100% the reason I fell in love with the team. I was 6 when they went to the ECF in 2001, and, not knowing much about the business side of the sports world at that time, didn't understand why they'd let arguably their best player go somewhere else. I sat through years of frustration, not even really feeling comfortable ever mentioning my allegiances out loud at home. Coming from SoCal in a very vocal sports household, it was Laker Nation. My mom disliked Kobe, but she was still a Laker fan, and my dad had been a fan of the team since his childhood, so it was just what you did. But I ventured out in my sports fanhood, eventually settling on teams that, to my young childhood eyes, had jerseys that dazzled visually and it sort of stuck. Not to mention that, in football, my favorite college player would be drafted to such a team, but we'll get to that. These Bucks were cool. I loved the logo and their jerseys were my two favorite colors (forest green and purple). A weird reason to pick a team, sure, but I'm a kid, what do you expect? Fast forward years and I'm sort of casually watching from the sidelines, not really "supporting" the team vocally, I watched Michael Redd grow into a star, then the injuries started. The team would teeter from mediocrity to just plain bad. Drafting Andrew Bogut 1st overall, drafting Yi in the 2007 Draft over even someone like Joakim Noah, draft after draft, made me wonder what was going on. (Jimmer over Kawhi Leonard??) Then 2013 came, and I remember how many people were criticizing our pick of a skinny kid from Greece. I wasn't among them because I was thinking "how bad could it be? It's not any worse than what we've had so far!" I did, however, criticize the Jabari pick, from the beginning. I just honestly didn't see what everyone else saw. Looking back, this draft wasn't so epic, I mean, Embiid, but he wasn't even on the court until his 3rd season. I'm just glad that the team has worked out as well as it did, and we're spending money on the right guys. I do find it funny that we could've had Lopez, Middleton, and Holiday through their respective drafts, but hindsight, you know? This fandom for me has been one of the wildest rides and I wouldn't trade any bit of it. These past two years, in the sports sense, have been pretty fun for me. My NBA team won a championship and my NFL team made it to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1988. Things are looking up! Thank you for the great video, Secret Base.
It really was over once Ray Allen left...I was so angry seeing him win championships with Miami...I also remember how we all hedged our bets on Parker when he got drafted, Giannis kinda was relegated to "maybe?" and it wasn't until Parker was injured that the team FINALLY began to heavily invest in Giannis. We kept waiting before that, some of us, like myself and my older brother would say over and over "man we need a superstar player like a KD or someone on that level or we'll never have a chance." How so very different it is now... My God the Bucks have been nobodies since the heyday, decades ago after Kareem and those championships... We've come A LONG LONG WAY...
I've never seen another coach able to succeed as much as George Karl with his players hating him as much as they do. That's a special talent lol.
I'm a huge Auburn Tigers fan. As painful as it would be you guys should do a collapse episode of the 2010 National Championship Auburn Tigers to the present day. There's a lot of history there. I am hopeful of the future but I've never seen such a dramatic fall apart in my life.
Now we need for the collapse: Showtime Los Angeles Lakers Shaq & Penny 2016 Cavs Collapse Reggie Miller Collapse Bad Boy Pistons 2008 Houston Rockets Collapse
Add the Seahawks, too. Every member from that Superbowl team is gone. I know Pete Carroll is still there, but they did a collapse vid on the Jags while Myles Jack was still there.
Who’s “we”?
Thank you Seth! Great work as always.
That 18 year Timberwolves video gonna hit crazy the way it goes to rock bottom, then slowly back up with draft picks in the wiggins year, but then slowly down after with every choice made after slowly leading us back to rock bottom only to be saved by KAT, ANT, and DLo. The movement and who led to what will be insane the way you guys cover videos. Can't wait lmfao
What we just watched was the chronicle of me being a bucks fan when ray allen was drafted. It has not been an easy life (please do not forget that horrible MCW trade that I hated with all my heart), but it is a life I am proud of.
Same bro 👊
I love this series!! Great job on the collapse and beef series. Keep them coming!
It was a long time coming for us Bucks fans… Love my City 414love
This has to be one of the most unique episodes of Collapse I've ever seen. Great job Seth!
Secret Base has some of the best content on KZhead.
suffering through the 2000's as a teenage diehard bucks fan. it really made the championship run feel that much better.
@shadbase thanks so much for making this! Being from milwaukee ive waited for this episode since you started the collapse series!
I've been a Bucks fan since Kareem was drafted. Back then they used to play a few games in Madison, even a playoff series at the UW Fieldhouse against the San Francisco Warriors. Loved the Marques/Sidney/Dobber/Don Nelson years. They should've won a championship. Enjoyed the Big Dog/Ray/Sam years. Am a big Michael Redd fan. Wonder what Bogut & TJ could've become if they hadn't had their falls. Cheered, remained optimistic, and endured the mediocre years. Appreciative and thankful for Herb Kohl's dedication to Milwaukee and the state of Wisconsin. LOVED watching the skinny kid from Greece (I always thought 'Greece Lightning' would've been a better nickname than Greek Freak) morph into the force he is today. Watching Game 6 was worth the 50 year wait!!!
Ray Allen was my favorite SG to watch in the 00s. I was always bummed out that he could never win a ring in his prime. I blame the failures on the Bucks management. Had they been more patient with the team and traded for another legitimate superstar, I think the Bucks could have ran the East for at least a few years. I was so glad when I heard that Boston traded for him, I knew instantly that the big 3 was going to be his best chance to get a ring.
It’s not management though It was George Karl. If Karl wasn’t upset that Allen got along with the owner, he would’ve stayed, and the Bucks with Redd and Allen stay at least playoff contenders in the 2000’s.
Y’all could’ve had redd 🤦🏾♂️
Yea that trade for Payton made NO SENSE but to be fair Allen was a little out his prime in 2008 championship but he was basically the FMVP but they was gonna give it to Pierce cause he been in Boston whole time
Man, this was my era the nostalgia is overwhelming thank you for this guys
Watching this team struggling then having a short period of great run in Jenning's era, I feel so emotional when he displays the 2014 picture of the roster with Khris and Giannis. Imagine how Giannis choose to stay with the bucks just to win the sweetest championship ever. The struggle of the team since Allen's era up to the 2021. Very inspiring. #Fearthedear
I love you guys! This is what I needed today.
The franchise as had its ups and downs, great to see where we are at today through it all. Great video as always guys 🙌
MY MAN SETH PRONOUNCING GIANNIS' NAME IN THE NIGERIAN FASHION. KING.
Thankkks for uploading! Been waiting for this!
This was a great recap for what Milwaukee went thru for the last 20 years.
I've wanted this video for sooooo long! Can't wait for 2021 nba finals game 5 rewinder.
that 2001 season was incredible. my family actually had season tickets a row away from Herb Kohl and we would always chat with him at the games. I remember AI taking over that series and stealing it right from under us. Its fun to think about what could have been, but realistically nobody was going to LA and taking that championship from Shaq and Kobe
I think the Bucks could have beaten the Lakers. They weren't a one man show like the 76ers and I have never seen a team with so much offensive fire power especially shooting. I'm a Pacer fan and I hate to admit this but if the Pacers the year before with an older Reggie Miller carrying that team on his back almost beat the Lakers than I think a prime Ray Allen with two of the best mid range shooters would beat them.
Speaking of that year. As a Pacers fan that first round series with the Bucks was actually scarier than the Lakers. Sure, Shaq scored 40 points per game against the Pacers but the Lakers would go on cold stretches and I felt after the first 2 games where Indiana was scared of the Lakers Indiana started to figure the Lakers out. I never felt the Pacers figured out the Bucks. It took the Pacers have two guys scoring 40 points to barely get by them in a game 5 at home.