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The Milwaukee Bucks came into Game 5 of their opening round series of the NBA Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers needing a win. After their loss in Game 4, they faced elimination with star point guard Damian Lillard sidelined. Unfortunately for the Bucks, they couldn’t muster enough to hold off their offseason as they fell to the Pacers, 119-118 in overtime. But in the midst of the disappointment, Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo made NBA history.
In the Bucks’ Game 5 loss to the Pacers, Giannis Antetokounmpo became the first player in NBA history to finish an elimination game with at least 30 points, 20 rebounds and ten assists. His final stat line was 30 points, 20 rebounds and 13 assists. He shot 9-of-17 from the field and 11-of-17 from the free-throw line.
And Game 5 might be significant in that it could have been Giannis’ final game in a Bucks jersey. The Greek Freak’s name had come up in potential trade rumors should the Bucks be eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs.
Since the Bucks won the title in 2021, it’s been disappointment after disappointment in the postseason. They reached the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2022, but have been an opening round exit for three consecutive seasons now.
Giannis himself fueled speculation before the season began when he hinted at the possibility of him being traded if the Bucks don’t win another title anytime soon, as per Sam Amick of The Athletic. That was more of him speculating from a front office point of view than him suggesting he might request a trade.
But it’s sure to be an interesting offseason for the Bucks. Giannis is in the prime of his career and playing at an elite level as Game 5 showed. He appeared in 67 games at a little over 34 minutes per game. He averaged 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 1.2 blocked shots with splits of 60.1 percent shooting from the field, 22.2 percent shooting from the three-point line and 61.7 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
