March has not been kind to the Milwaukee Bucks. Following a resurgent February, their playoff hopes were suddenly alive, and with Giannis Antetokounmpo's return nearing, it felt like this team had a great opportunity to make some noise. Unfortunately for them, any momentum the team built that month is long gone. Their hopes of making the postseason grow slimmer every single day. With Giannis' future in Milwaukee hanging in the balance, that could be disastrous.
The Milwaukee Bucks' playoff streak is in danger
The Milwaukee Bucks are 1-4 in March. Not only are they losing games, but they are getting blown off the floor. Their -93 plus/minus is the worst in the NBA this month. This team has hit rock bottom after a blowout loss to Orlando, and there isn't much hope on the horizon, with matchups against playoff contenders like Cleveland, Phoenix, Miami, and San Antonio still on the slate.
Sitting at 11th in the East, the Milwaukee Bucks are four games back of the Charlotte Hornets for the final Play-In spot. Even amid a two-game losing streak, the Hornets are red hot and likely not cooling off anytime soon. If the Hornets keep winning and Milwaukee keeps losing, this team could very well miss the postseason for the first time since 2015-16.
That could have plenty of worrisome franchise-altering consequences.
Giannis' future with the Milwaukee Bucks remains in question
Even if he'd still love to make things work in Milwaukee, Giannis clearly holds some interest in playing elsewhere. Rumors about a trade were more prominent than ever leading up to the trade deadline this past February. If the team misses the postseason, there's a good chance those talks will pick back up as soon as the offseason begins.
That's why every single game matters. Even if the Milwaukee Bucks don't make it to the NBA Finals, showing some fight down the stretch here could mean a lot to the Greek Freak. If the team continues getting blown off the floor every night, even by teams below them in the standings, there isn't much reason for optimism.
The team is just dysfunctional. There's no denying that. Sure, injuries hold some blame for the team's many shortcomings, but even when healthy, they've had issues. Some would argue that the best way forward is tearing things down this summer and trying to build a different contender around Giannis. That's valid, but if they keep playing like this, he might not be there for it.
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