During the 2025 NBA playoffs, the Milwaukee Bucks’ misfortune continued.
The Milwaukee Bucks have performed with anticipation on their past three postseason runs. After all, the Bucks are eliminated every time in the opening round.
Speaking of the 2025 NBA playoffs, the Bucks suffered an embarrassing 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Indiana Pacers.
The early exit certainly was a shock to most people, given the Bucks had a dynamic duo of Giannis Antetocomo and Damien Lillard on the roster.
Pacers’ 2025 playoff run will be rushed and forgotten by fans. After all, the Tyrese Haliburton-led team was never expected to have a deep postseason run, let alone reach the 2025 NBA Finals.
Despite losing to the Pacers, Bucks’ Kyle Kuzma recently went out of his way to praise his conference rivals.
“It was definitely a bit tough for us. Indiana was awkward. They’re so good this year, they’re insane. They went under the radar with a lot of people.
“I don’t think a lot of people thought they were going to be themselves, but they did,” Kuzma said on the DAWG Talk Podcast.
Kuzma then pointed out that the coached Rick Carlisle team had an insane depth and supported the Pacers’ unforgettable playoff run.
“Seriously, tell you. What a run. They really showed you what the league is now. You could have eight, eight real killers.
“If Hari has a bad game, I don’t know what a bad game for him because of how he plays, but if he films it bad, Nenbird is going to have a 19, Nesmith is going to have a 22,” Kuzma said.
This offseason, the Bucks eventually pulled out the plug in their Antetocomo Lillard experiments as the dam was abandoned. The Bucks called former pacer Miles Turner to sign a four-year, $109 million contract.
Kuzma spoke about his new teammate, saying, “It’s dope. Miles is a great player and he certainly knows how to play the ball. He just knows himself.”
Finally, the Bucks also reflect on Lillard’s short stint with the Bucks. Ultimately, he praises him for fighting through a clot to make himself available for the postseason.
“It ___ us. The dam went down. He had a blood clot. No one ever heard of him coming back from such a blood clot.
“He had high hopes. We wanted to win this year. Having him back was a really good thing for us,” Kuzma concluded.
At the end of the day, Lillard’s stint ended in a painful way as the Bucks star suffered from an Achilles heel torn in the playoffs.
Lillard has now signed with the Portland Trail Blazers to focus on his recovery before attempting to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy and give him another shot during his career.