Finally! Milwaukee Bucks finish off Phoenix Suns to win first NBA title in 50 years
NOTE: This story was updated on Jan. 18, 2022, to make it free for all readers.
The explosion of noise inside Fiserv Forum was 50 years in the making.
Outside the building, the population of a decent-sized city in the Deer District also reached a cathartic roar.
The Milwaukee Bucks were back on the NBA mountaintop for the first time since the 1970-71 season and the joyful buzz in the city felt like it could be heard in every corner of the state.
The resilient Bucks fought off the feisty Phoenix Suns, riding the wondrous talents of their transcendent superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo for a 105-98 victory in Game 6 of the NBA Finals on Tuesday night. After falling behind 0-2, the Bucks took the crown by winning four straight in the best-of-seven series.
The title represents a remarkable turnaround for the city and the team. In the 2013-14 season, when Antetokounmpo was a starry-eyed rookie from Greece, the Bucks went 15-67, playing many games in front of half-empty stands at the Bradley Center. In the last two months, Milwaukee won 16 games to secure the title.
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The season that started with Antetokounmpo signing a long-term contract extension ended with him cradling both the Larry O'Brien Trophy and the NBA Finals MVP trophy as he answered postgame questions.
"Coming back, I was like, this is my city," Antetokounmpo said. "They trust me. They believe in me. They believe in us ... obviously I wanted to get the job done. But that's my stubborn side. It's easy to go somewhere and go win a championship with somebody else. It's easy. I could go to a superteam and just do my part and win a championship. But this is the hard way to do it and this is the way to do it, and we did it."
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Box score: Milwaukee Bucks 105, Phoenix Suns 98
Now Milwaukee is the epicenter of professional basketball with a crown jewel of an arena and a passionate fan base that packed the Deer District throughout the playoff run. Heady times for a franchise that not too long ago debated the efficacy of building a new home to keep the team in the city.
All those good feelings flow from Antetokounmpo, who has grown from that skinny teenager to an unstoppable force that the sport has not seen before.
Antetokounmpo, who suffered a scary injury in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals, missed two games in that series but was ready in Game 1 vs. the Suns.
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He delivered one of the most dominant performances in Finals history with 50 points and 14 rebounds in Game 6. He even knocked down his free throws, going 17 for 19 from the line. It was his crowning achievement after so many memorable moments of these Finals, including his improbable block of Deandre Ayton in Game 4 and his Suns-eclipsing alley-oop in Game 5.
Antetokounmpo scored 20 points in the third quarter as the Bucks battled back from a 47-42 halftime deficit. It was like he was willing the Bucks to the title.
"I don't know how many words you need to use beyond 50 points in a close-out game in an NBA Finals," Bucks center Brook Lopez said of Antetokounmpo. "Pretty much sums it all up. It's so indicative of who Giannis is as a player, as a person. He has that mindset always to just take care of business, and he's been our leader throughout my time.
"To have him as a focal point of everything we do and the way he goes about it, it's just contagious with the whole team, and he's so impressive night in and night out."
Antetokounmpo got plenty of help. Khris Middleton, his teammate of eight seasons who often acts as the closer for this team, scored six points in the final 4 minutes and 35 seconds. Middleton's midrange jumper, his specialty, was the dagger that gave Milwaukee a 102-96 lead with just under a minute remaining.
"We knew each time we took the court we had a chance to win," Middleton said. "And we have everybody in the locker room and organization that believes and that is never going to give up until it's completely over. That's who you want to play with, guys who are going to fight to the end."
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There was also Bobby Portis, who looked like he was headed for a journeyman career until he found a home in Milwaukee that embraced him. Portis scored 16 points, including a baseline floater that gave the Bucks the lead for good at 84-82 early in the fourth quarter. There was also his nonstop hustle and crowd-hyping antics that have endeared him to Bucks fans.
"Coming into this situation, you don't know what you're getting yourself into," Portis said. "But to sacrifice, the adjustments — life is all about adjustments. When you make a decision and do things, you have to really sacrifice in that role.
"With me coming here, it's been great. Having great teammates like Giannis, Khris and Jrue (Holiday) and all the guys that really just believe in you and embrace you. Having great coaches that really put you in position to succeed. And then having the best fans in the world. We had 80,000, 90,000 to 100,000 people. That's unheard of, to have that many people here supporting and knowing it's a long time since the Bucks have been in this position. They never wavered. They came and supported us. It's a great feeling, man, to be called a champion."
The victory paid off all those "Bucks in six!" chants that became a mantra for the team's fans this year. The former franchise player who coined that phrase, Brandon Jennings, was in the building and banged the drum to start the raucous evening.
Antetokounmpo could sense the moment with 19 seconds remaining as teammate Pat Connaughton lined up to shoot free throws with the Bucks leading, 104-98. The two-time NBA MVP waved his hands to the crowd, pumping up the decibels to an ear-splitting level among the fans who have waited so long for a championship team.
"It's incredible," said Connaughton, who has become an entrepreneur in Milwaukee. "The fans have supported us through thick and thin. They have had our backs as we fought adversity and as we were down 2-0 in this series and down 2-0 in other series (against the Brooklyn Nets).
"Just the support you felt in the city throughout this entire playoff run was incredible and to be able to do it and win it and be able to call ourselves world champions in front of our home fans, however many, 17,000, 18,000 in the arena, whoever knows how many were outside the arena, I saw people climbing up on poles and everything. It's incredible and the city of Milwaukee deserves it and so I'm just proud that I could be part of a team with my teammates that gave it to them."
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Bucks beat Phoenix Suns in Game 6 of NBA Finals to win title
