The Milwaukee Bucks have their sights set on another championship. It is why they traded for Damian Lillard and continue to add talent around Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Greek Freak is unquestionably one of the best players in the world, but the Bucks are often left out when discussing the NBA’s top title challengers.
It would be easy to blame recent moves or a lack of talent, but the Bucks have four All-Stars on their roster. Adding Taurean Prince, Delon Wright, and Gary Trent Jr. gives them some needed depth. It is all about putting it all together, but there is a massive reason why experts are betting against that happening.
The Bucks have been chasing the title since 2019 and won a championship in 2021. Little has gone right since and one shocking statistic sums up why. The nugget may be troubling moving forward as Giannis turns 30 and may be heading into the downside of his NBA career.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has not been healthy in the playoffs
The Greek Freak has missed time in four of the last five playoff runs. He injured his ankle in Game 4 of the 2020 second-round series against the Heat and missed the decisive Game 5. The Bucks won the championship in 2021, but Giannis missed the final two games of the conference finals with a knee injury. He was healthy in 2022 before missing eight of Milwaukee’s 11 postseason games in the last two years.
Since 2020, Antetokounmpo has appeared in 45 of the Bucks’ 56 playoff games. Milwaukee is 5-6 in the 11 contests he missed, which is impressive. It does not speak to the games he played where he was significantly less than 100 percent but gutted his way through.
The Bucks need Giannis healthy to win another championship. Lillard, Khris Middleton, and Brook Lopez are all over 33 years old and on the downside of their careers. Antetokounmpo should still be in his prime and it will take a heroic effort to lift his team.
The Bucks cannot afford to have him missing time, especially with an aging roster and immense pressure to bring home another championship. Giannis turns 30 in December and is unlikely to be healthier as he ages. The missed games in the postseason are adding up and this could be a consistent trend like fans have seen with Kawhi Leonard in Los Angeles.
The Milwaukee Bucks hope for a magical championship run led by a healthy Giannis Antetokounmpo, but it feels more unlikely with each injury. Missing time in four of the last five years has decreased the belief in the franchise, especially with an older core around him. The Bucks need a ton to break right, and all signs point to disappointment in the Cream City.
It is the perfect opportunity for the Greek Freak to prove his doubters wrong and reclaim the mantle as the best player on the planet. Now, all that is left is doing it. History suggests it won’t happen, but never write off one of the best to ever lace them up.