Milwaukee Bucks fans have gotten used to seeing their team represented in NBA All-Star Weekend, but it hasn’t always been that way. Giannis Antetokounmpo’s dominance in the Eastern Conference has made the Bucks basically a lock for the event, but it’s always interesting to take a bit of perspective to fairly measure how great the current state of the team is.
Giannis made his first All-Star Game in 2017, and he hasn't missed one since, but that’s far from being his biggest feature. He has been the most-voted player in the Eastern Conference three times (2019, 2020, and 2023), and he was even the overall most-voted player this year, ending a seven-year streak of LeBron James being the most popular player in the NBA.
But Giannis isn’t the only one who has represented the Bucks in the All-Star this last few years. Thanks to the team being great from 2019 on, other players has also been selected to honor their regular season performance, making Milwaukee one of the most present teams in the last seasons.
Khris Middleton joined Giannis in 2019 and 2020, two years in which the Bucks had the best overall record come All-Star time. He wasn’t selected in 2021, but he came back in 2022 after the championship run. When Middleton got hurt, Jrue Holiday was the one joining Giannis in 2023, and Damian Lillard will play next to the Greek Freak this weekend after landing in Milwaukee last summer.
This way, the Bucks will have had two players in the All-Star Game in five of its last six seasons. They have clearly become one of the most stars-prominent teams in the league, but how was their situation in years prior? Let’s get into that next.