The NBA Playoffs continue to chug along, and on Tuesday the Miami Heat became the first team to advance to the conference finals. Miami took care of Milwaukee in five games, with the Bucks’ lone win being an overtime triumph in Game 4. Even with Giannis Antetokounmpo, who did not play Tuesday due to a sprained right ankle, in the rotation the Heat seemed to have all the answers for what Milwaukee wanted to do. While the Bucks, who finished with the league’s best record, were expected to play deeper into the postseason maybe we should have seen this coming.

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Why? Because Pat Riley built his team with this challenge in mind, and having an elite head coach in Erik Spoelstra on the sideline didn’t hurt, either.

Signing Jimmy Butler in free agency (sign-and-trade with Philadelphia) was the biggest move, as his addition gave Miami the star that they needed to serve as the focal point. And from a personality standpoint he fits right in with the “Heat culture,” a tough, talented player who always seems to play with a proverbial chip on his shoulder. While this may have been overlooked during the “Heatles” era of LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, that mindset has been a huge part of the way in which the Heat have done things since “trading” for Riley way back in 1995.

For the right to sign Riley the Heat gave up $1 million and its first-round pick in 1996, which the Knicks used to select Walter McCarty. I’d say that the move worked out for Miami, which has three titles to show for it and no one would be surprised if they added a fourth this season.

Acquiring Butler was the first major move, but just before free agency Miami selected Tyler Herro with the 13th overall pick in 2019 NBA Draft. Herro comes off the bench but he’s been a key contributor all season long, and in the playoffs he’s averaging 14.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.4 3-pointers per game. Kendrick Nunn was signed after playing well for the Warriors’ G-League affiliate, and the Rookie of the Year finalist was a starter prior to the stoppage back in March. He hasn’t been much of a factor in the bubble due to his late arrival after a bout with COVID-19, and then an exit to deal with personal reasons, so he’s still working his way back to pre-stoppage levels.

For many teams losing a starter at that juncture in the season would be a major issue but that hasn’t been the case for Miami, thanks to the presence of Goran Dragic. One of the league’s top reserves, he’s been even better since moving back into the starting lineup. Bam Adebayo was an all-star for the first time in his career this season, and he was flat-out dominant on the boards against the Bucks. What also shouldn’t be overlooked is the deal Riley swung just before the trade deadline, acquiring Jae Crowder, Andre Iguodala and Solomon Hill from the Grizzlies in exchange for Justise Winslow, Dion Waiters and James Johnson.

While Hill hasn’t factored much into the rotation, loading up on wings capable of defending multiple positions was the perfect counter to what Milwaukee wants to do. Crowder and Iguodala are both physical and long enough to make things difficult for Antetokounmpo, and the versatile wings are also helpful when it comes to recovering to shooters. Milwaukee’s lack of a player who can make things happen off the dribble, and essentially improvise when the situation calls for it, stuck out in this series and Miami was able to exploit that weakness. And the additions make Miami well-equipped to defend either possible opponent in the next round, be it Boston or Toronto (the Celtics hold a 3-2 series lead). While the Lakers and Clippers remain the favorites to win the title in the eyes of many, no one should be overlooking the Heat.

Going back to Milwaukee, Tuesday’s loss begins an offseason that won’t lack for intrigue. Antetokounmpo, in his postgame comments, sounded 100 percent set on remaining with the Bucks for the long haul, with an eye towards building a culture that’s capable of not just regular season success but winning a title as well. He’s eligible for a super-max extension this offseason, but that won’t be his only option. Antetokounmpo could choose to simply play out the final season of his current deal and become an unrestricted free agent next summer, and Milwaukee would still be in position to offer the best contract.

Or he could go for a “one-plus-one” along the lines of what Kawhi Leonard has, with the second season being a player option. Why do this? Well, thanks to the pandemic and the havoc it wreaked on the NBA schedule the league and its players association still don’t have a salary cap number for next season. As a result the two sides have reportedly agreed to push back the draft (originally rescheduled for October 16) and free agency (October 18), because it makes no sense to leave those dates as is without concrete cap and luxury tax numbers.

Giannis doing anything other than signing a super-max come October will kick the rumor mill into high gear, even more so than where it was this season, and I imagine that this would be very annoying for Bucks fans to have to deal with. But on his end it makes sense to not rush into a decision, and until an actual decision is made the rumors don’t mean much.

The Bucks’ season ended well before they had hoped, and the team didn’t seem to recapture the “magic” that it had before the season stopped back in March. And that’s understandable; no team has dealt with the set of circumstances in league history (maybe the then-Hornets having to play in Oklahoma City due to Hurricane Katrina, but at least they had a home arena to call their own), and as we’ve seen in numerous instances coaches and players alike are still dealing with struggles on occasion, most notably Paul George. But Milwaukee’s time in the bubble won’t be remembered solely for the team’s failure to win a championship.

The move to not play Game 4 against the Magic, which began with George Hill’s decision to sit and his teammates’ desire to support him in the aftermath of Jacob Blake’s shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin (and two protesters being killed by a 17-year old who was allowed to return home before turning himself in) set off a chain of events never seen in sports. The Magic and the rest of the league joined the Bucks in the wildcat strike (it wasn’t a boycott), and other teams and leagues did the same. It’s been said before that there are a lot of uncomfortable conversations that need to be had in this country before progress is truly made.

While some of the gestures made in the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing in May were made with good intentions, T-shirts and court logos don’t equate to actual change. Hill and his teammates took a stand for what they believe in, and for that reason it would be silly to focus solely on the Bucks not winning a title when evaluating their season.

Raphielle Johnson
Raphielle Johnson

BSL Analyst

Raphielle’s been writing about college sports for more than a decade, making the move to college basketball alone in 2013. Beginning his work with the former website CollegeHoops.net in 2003, Raphielle spent 3 years writing for NBCSports.com beginning 2013, covering CBB and the Olympics. In 2016, Raphielle joined Heavy.com. If there’s a game on, there’s a strong likelihood that he’s watching it.

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