Giannis Antetokounmpo stars as Milwaukee Bucks beat Oklahoma City Thunder to win NBA Cup
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The Milwaukee Bucks celebrate after beating the Oklahoma City Thunder to win the NBA Cup.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LAS VEGAS – Giannis Antetokounmpo has always believed in teamwork, and throughout the course of this National Basketball Association (NBA) Cup he has mentioned the term “team basketball” a couple of times.
Working well together paid off for the Milwaukee Bucks on Dec 17, as they silenced the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second half to win the second edition of the in-season tournament with a 97-81 victory in Las Vegas.
Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Antetokounmpo delivered a triple-double of 26 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists along with two steals and three blocks for the Bucks, who drilled 17 three-pointers to complete an unbeaten run and follow in the footsteps of the Los Angeles Lakers as NBA Cup champions.
Damian Lillard added 23 points for Milwaukee, who held the potentially explosive Thunder offence to 31 points in the second half at the T-Mobile Arena.
“That’s who we are,” Antetokounmpo said of the Bucks’ second-half dominance, which saw them push a one-point lead at half-time to as many as 20.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 21 points, but he connected on just eight of his 24 shots from the field, and two of nine from three-point range.
The triumph was a vindication for the Bucks, who were stung by the Indiana Pacers in the 2023 Cup semi-finals.
They were the only team from last season’s semi-finals to make it back to the final four in Vegas, beating the Orlando Magic in the quarter-finals and dispatching the Atlanta Hawks next.
Their Cup success has also been part of a massive turnaround after a dismal 2-8 start to the season.
The Bucks have now won 13 of their last 16 games, and Antetokounmpo, who led the team to the 2021 NBA title, indicated he considered it only a stepping stone.
“It’s great for our team,” said the Greek, who was named MVP of the tournament. “The last 15 games we’ve played, we’ve competed. We’ve played team basketball.
“I’m so proud of this group. Coming out of half-time, we know we have 24 minutes to go. We came out in the third quarter, we set the tone. We played great team basketball.”
The Bucks held the Thunder to just 14 points in the third quarter – their lowest points total in a period this season.
“Most importantly we are competing defensively,” Antetokounmpo added. “That’s who we are. That’s who we’re going to continue to be – and the job’s not done.”
Unlike the rest of the Cup matches, the final does not count towards the regular-season record, nor do the players’ performances count in their career stats.
But the trophy does come with a financial reward, with each player on the winning team set to pocket more than US$514,971 (S$695,490) – a significant chunk of money for the younger players and lesser lights in the team.
Thunder players will take home US$205,988 apiece for second place. But they will head back to Oklahoma City disappointed with one of their worst shooting performances of the season.
The Western Conference leaders – who went 3-1 in group play before beating the Dallas Mavericks in the quarter-finals and the Houston Rockets in the last four – connected on just 29 of their 86 shots from the field (33.7 per cent) and made just five of 32 (15.6 per cent) from three-point range.
Milwaukee made 34 of their 81 attempts (42 per cent) from the field, shooting 17 of 40 (42.5 per cent) from beyond the arc.
“We did some good things,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.
“But obviously a tough night offensively all the way around for us. We didn’t score nearly enough points, especially in the second half, to give ourselves a chance to win. But we can learn from it, move forward from here.” AFP, REUTERS
