1974 NBA Finals Game 7 vs Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks: Two championships, five MVP awards, and a legacy of resilience.
The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and play home games at Fiserv Forum. Former U.S. senator Herb Kohl was the long-time owner of the team, but on April 16, 2014, a group led by billionaire hedge fund managers Wes Edens and Marc Lasry agreed to purchase a majority interest in the team from Kohl, a sale which was approved by the owners of the NBA and its Board of Governors one month later on May 16.
The team is managed by Jon Horst, the team's former director of basketball operations, who took over for John Hammond. The Bucks have won two league championships (1971, 2021), three conference titles (Western: 1971, 1974, Eastern: 2021), 19 division titles (1971–1974, 1976, 1980–1986, 2001, 2019–2024), and the 2024 NBA Cup.
Quick Facts
- Final score
- Celtics 102, Bucks 87
- Series result
- Boston wins 4-3
- Key performer (bos)
- John Havlicek (Clutch scoring and defense)
- Key performer (mil)
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Double-double effort)
- Venue
- Milwaukee Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Date
- May 12, 1974
Lore & Background
The Bucks were awarded to Milwaukee on January 22, 1968. A fan contest named the team the Bucks, referencing Wisconsin's official wild animal, the white-tailed deer. Their first season was a struggle, but they won a coin flip for the first pick in the 1969 draft and selected Lew Alcindor (later Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). In 1970–71, after trading for Oscar Robertson, the Bucks finished 66–16, set a then-NBA record 20-game win streak, and swept the Baltimore Bullets to win their first NBA championship. They reached the 1974 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics, losing in seven games. After Abdul-Jabbar was traded in 1975, the Bucks rebuilt and won six straight division titles in the 1980s but never reached the Finals again until 2021, when they won their second championship.
Reader's Guide
The Bucks' home arena is Fiserv Forum. Key eras include the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar era (1969–1975), the post-Abdul-Jabbar era (1976–1979), and the Sidney Moncrief era (1979–1990). Notable players include Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Oscar Robertson, Bob Dandridge, Sidney Moncrief, Bob Lanier, Terry Cummings, Glenn Robinson, Ray Allen, Michael Redd, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, and Damian Lillard. The team's colors were forest green, deep red and white for much of the 1970s; red was eliminated in 1985.
Did You Know?
- The Bucks are one of the fastest expansion teams to win a championship, doing so in their third season (1971).
- In 1983, the Bucks became the first team in NBA history to sweep the Boston Celtics in a best-of-seven playoff series.
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