The Bucks finally did it, they won the NBA Finals for the first time in 50 years. The last time they won gas was 40 cents a gallon, the monthly rent was $150, and a 6 pack of beer was $2.05. To say it’s been a long time would be an understatement. Sure the state of Wisconsin has had great success with the Packers, and there has been plenty of parades. Green Bay is tiny, and it’s almost a 2-hour ride from Milwaukee. If you lived and died with the Bucks, yesterday was for you. We had PJ Tucker drunkly screaming about being a dog while holding the biggest gold bottle I’ve ever seen, Giannis mocking all of the desert dogs who counted how long his free throws took, and Brandon Jennings celebrating like he was on the team. Words don’t do it justice.
There’s always one MVP of the parade, and it’s never the best player. In the 2016 Cavs parade, JR Smith was drinking Hennessy with no shirt on, the 2019 Raptors parade, we had 7 foot Marc Gasol dancing on top of the bus, and in 2018 we had Nick Young and Jordan Bell partying on parade shirtless. Somehow Brandon Jennings, who hasn’t played in the NBA since 2017, is in contention for parade MVP. Hey, once a Buck, always a Buck, I guess; Milwaukee drafted him in 2009, played from 09-13, and then came back in 2018 for a total of 14 games. The reason why he’s even at the parade and was courtside was because of the prediction in 2013 when Jennings said that the Bucks, who were the 8th seed, went against the 1st seed Heat he told reporters that the Bucks would win in 6, then he doubled down in 2018.
During the biggest game of his career Giannis showed up, if you casually follow the NBA you know that he had a historical stat line. The most impressive thing was his performance from the charity stripe where he went 17-19. The entire playoffs his free throw routine was criticized. He had a 10-second violation called on him in the 2nd round versus the Nets. Which I knew was a rule, but I didn’t think the refs would actually call it. TNT had a timer on his free throws, desert dogs were counting 100 dollar bills when he was at the free throw line. None of it mattered as Giannis led the Bucks to a championship. Giannis is such a humble guy that he knows he can make fun of himself and won’t get butthurt. I could never see LeBron doing that.
We even have Coach Bud getting into the celebration. Before the Bucks won the media tried to fire him the entire way through the playoffs. When they were down 3-2 against the Nets in the 2nd round he was gonna be fired, when the Hawks tied the series 2-2 he was destined to be fired, and if he didn’t win the entire NBA Finals his job was on the line. If anybody deserves to blow off some steam it’s Coach Bud.
As long as Giannis is in Milwaukee, they will be relevant. From his comments, it sounds like he’s not going anywhere. These playoffs showed how humble and hungry he is. I love how much he hates super teams and despises everything about them. He wanted to do it the hard way, which is the right way, and he accomplished that. It makes sense that the kid who had to share shoes with his brothers and selling DVDs on the streets of Greece isn’t afraid of putting in the work.
