2020–21 Milwaukee Bucks season


The 2020–21 Milwaukee Bucks season was the 53rd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association. On April 30, 2021, the Bucks clinched the Central Division for a record 10th time with a win over the Chicago Bulls. The Bucks finished the season with a 46–26 record, good enough for the third seed. The Bucks began their playoff run by sweeping the sixth-seeded Miami Heat in the opening round, in a rematch of the Eastern Conference Semi-finals the previous year. The Bucks then defeated the second-seeded Brooklyn Nets in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals in seven games after beginning the series in a 0-2 deficit, and barely winning the third game of the series 86 to 83. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bucks defeated the [2020–21 2020–21 Atlanta Hawks season|Atlanta Hawks season|Atlanta Hawks] in six games, reaching the NBA Finals for the first time in 47 years, and winning the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history. The Bucks are the first NBA team to have won both a Western Conference and Eastern Conference championship in their history, as they were in the Western Conference when they reached the NBA Finals in 1971 and 1974. The Bucks would face the Phoenix Suns in the NBA Finals. Despite losing the first two games, the Bucks won four straight, winning 4–2 and clinching their second NBA title, the first since 1971. This made the 2021 Milwaukee Bucks the first and only team to overcome two 0-2 deficits in a single playoffs.

Draft picks

RoundPickPlayerPositionNationalitySchool
124R. J. HamptonPG/SGUnited States

Standings

Conference

Notesz – Clinched home court advantage for the entire playoffsc – Clinched home court advantage for the conference playoffsy – Clinched division titlex – Clinched playoff spot

Transactions

Trades

Failed Bogdan Bogdanović trade

In November 2020, the Bucks attempted to acquire Bogdan Bogdanović through a sign-and-trade deal along with Justin James from the Sacramento Kings for Donte DiVincenzo, D. J. Wilson, and Ersan İlyasova. The trade unraveled when the NBA announced they were investigating the Bucks for having contact with Bogdanović and/or his agent before it was allowed under free agency rules. The Bucks reportedly felt double-crossed by the situation, and decided not to pursue the trade further. The league voided the team's second-round pick in 2022 at the conclusion of the investigation in December. According to Bogdanović, he was not aware of the trade and felt betrayed by the Kings. DiVincenzo and Wilson stayed with the Bucks and İlyasova was eventually waived. Bogdanović would sign with the Atlanta Hawks as a restricted free agent, after the Kings extended his qualifying offer. Coincidentally, the Kings and Bucks would be able to make a successful trade during the following season, where the Kings successfully acquired DiVincenzo in a four-team trade.