Behind the Bucks Pass
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Milwaukee Bucks are set to peak at the right time

By Ti Windisch

Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) defends Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) in the first quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) defends Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) in the first quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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It’s not a good time for an NBA team to be peaking. The Milwaukee Bucks are in a good spot because their stars are so young.

The Milwaukee Bucks aren’t ready to contend yet. With an incomplete roster and their best player, Giannis Antetokounmpo, being 22 years old, it will be a little while before the Bucks are peaking as a team.

That’s a good thing. It’s really hard to be patient–sometimes I get frustrated because Amazon’s two-day delivery is too slow–but in this scenario it’s beneficial for the Bucks to have Giannis’ peak come not next year, but a few more seasons down the line.

The Cleveland Cavaliers killed the Eastern Conference in the NBA Playoffs this season. Aside from a horrible LeBron James game against the Boston Celtics, Cleveland didn’t lose. The Toronto Raptors outlasted Milwaukee in a tough series, then got obliterated by Cleveland.

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Paul George, playing as well as he ever has, couldn’t take a game from LeBron and the Cavs. The Celtics managed to grab one game, and they were the first seed in the conference! Cleveland is just on another level.

That level might not even be high enough to truly challenge the Golden State Warriors, who smacked Cleveland and won by 22 points in Game 1 on Thursday night. The Cavs team has more talent that anybody in the East, with LeBron, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, plus some really skilled role players.

The Warriors, on the other hand, has Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson on the roster. That’s just two of the best offensive players ever, the best defensive player in the league, and a player in Klay who does both things very well.

Milwaukee has Giannis. Khris Middleton is good, but he’s no Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving. Jabari Parker might end up being incredible, but injuries have slowed down his progression in a sad and noticeable way thus far.

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To be clear, it’s not like the Bucks shouldn’t be trying to win games on the floor and make a real impact on the Eastern Conference playoff race as soon as next season. There’s no drawback to trying to compete now, as long as future assets aren’t tossed away for cheap rentals while Giannis is just 22 years old.

This is a good place for the Bucks to be in. It seems like the team is going to start becoming competitive very soon. Still, there’s time to wait. This team’s championship window isn’t closing, it’s opening.

Thank goodness for that. Imagine being the Raptors, or the Pacers, or one of these other teams with one of the best teams they’ve had in a while. This Toronto Raptors squad was packed with talent, and they got brushed off by Cleveland, who may in turn get brushed off by Golden State in the Finals.

With so much top-tier talent packed into two teams, it’s a nice time to be a young team with nothing but upside. The Bucks should be trying to compete already, but with the knowledge that nobody has much of a shot at winning a title besides the two teams in the Finals right now.

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LeBron didn’t win his first NBA title until he was 27 years old. Steph was 26 when the Warriors won in 2015. Durant still doesn’t have a ring. Giannis has time to grow into his peak. Considering how damn good he already is, it’s going to be very exciting to see where he ends up in three or four years, when the Warriors and Cavaliers are beginning to fade.

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