As a lifelong Chicago Bulls fan, I am naturally inclined to dislike the Milwaukee Bucks. That, however, doesn’t mean I can’t respect them.
In my mind, the Bucks are the reincarnation of the 2008-2009 Bulls who nearly eliminated the defending NBA champion Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.
The difference? The Bucks might just topple the No. 3-seed Atlanta Hawks.
The fight in the Bucks after losing star center Andrew Bogut is nothing short of amazing. A lot of teams in that situation would mentally throw in the towel and gear up for free agency, but not the Bucks. They went down 0-2 and won three straight.
Granted, the Bulls did gift wrap John Salmons for the Bucks at the trade deadline, and they wouldn’t be where they are without him. But the unselfish play of Brandon Jennings and the strange revival of Jerry Stackhouse have made this team a legitimate playoff team as well.
Maybe the Bucks go cold and lose the next two games, or maybe they win and move on to face the Orlando Magic buzz saw. Either way, they accomplished more this season than anyone could’ve imagined.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but they’ve earned it: Fear the Deer.
