Jabari Parker Hates Losing And That’s Important

As the Milwaukee Bucks hope to see Jabari Parker reach new heights, there will likely be nothing that will accelerate his path to greatness more than his hatred for losing.

As players all around the NBA who haven’t made the playoffs prepare for a summer of hard work, it sounds like some Milwaukee Bucks may need to take a long, hard look at themselves.

One thing is for sure, one of Milwaukee’s brightest young stars seems fully prepared to do whatever it takes to come back better and ensure his team isn’t on the outside looking in next season.

For anyone who has seen or heard the Milwaukee Bucks players exit interviews, it’s fair to say that Parker’s stood out as much as anybody’s.

In an ocean of interesting quotes that were always inevitable to come out of a disappointing season, the tone that came with the words of the Chicago native made you sit up and take notice.

Jabari Parker sounded angry.

Speaking of the prospect of his first fully healthy NBA offseason, Parker’s comments almost said more about his teammates than it did about him:

"I know for myself, I’m going to get better. I’m going to be in the gym 24/7, not in the beginning but down the line. I’m going to let my body recuperate and let my joints heal, but I know that I have a plan of what I want to do, and if I happen to surpass some people on my team and they don’t have that same mentality, so be it, but I know individually where I want to be."

These aren’t the type of words you normally hear from a 21-year-old in the NBA but they speak volumes of who Parker is. It’s not for us to debate who the “some people on my team” might be, but Jabari made it clear they wouldn’t be spared by him.

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That’s a statement that suggests a desire to set standards. In truth, it’s the sort of thing that you’d expect from veteran leadership. Considering that Parker made special mention of how the absence of those guys affected the team, that may be something worth noting.

"This year our team pretty much didn’t have an identity. We didn’t have a leader to look up to. Last year we had guys who were committed."

Parker’s comments may be the first indication of a guy who wants to grab his team by the scruff of the neck and pull them to glory alongside him, but they’re also further proof of a trend that many Bucks fans had already noticed.

Jabari hates to lose and if there’s one thing that he might possibly hate even more, it’s talking about losing. That was clear every time the Fox Sports Wisconsin crew made the misguided decision to grab Jabari for the half time interview when the Bucks were trailing.

Here’s just a very brief handful, but if you don’t believe me search “Jabari interview” on Twitter. Notice the variety of dates that show up in the tweets for you, and how all of the observations look something like these ones.

Here’s Jabari at half time against the Utah Jazz on March 20, while his team trailed by only a single point.

None of this is good for reporters, but it could be great for the Bucks. The fact that the Bucks had just lost badly to Indiana’s second string hours before Parker’s exit interview should certainly not go without mention either.

If losing upsets Parker this much you really have to believe he will do everything in his power to get better. The best teams and the best players hate losing. It might not be healthy, but the motivation of winning to avoid the feeling of defeat can be a real thing.

Next: Milwaukee Bucks: Exit Interviews Wrap-Up

If Parker brings that to the table for the Bucks, it could become an important detail in the makeup of this young squad.