Shannon Sharpe terms Milwaukee Bucks' exit a 'cataclysmic failure'
The Milwaukee Bucks were one quarter away from Game 6 back in Miami as they held a convincing 16-point lead after the third quarter. But due to their inability to defend Jimmy Butler and their poor late-game execution on offense, the Bucks dropped Game 5 at home 128-126 in overtime on Wednesday, ending their season.
On "Skip and Shannon: Undisputed," Shannon Sharpe talked about the Bucks' disappointing loss and the pressure being too much for them.
"A cataclysmic failure for the Bucks," Sharpe said. "’I’ve never seen anything like this. Nobody from the Bucks wanted that basketball last night."
Sharpe mentioned how during a pivotal jump-ball sequence late in the fourth quarter, the ball was tipped towards Giannis, and he immediately got rid of the basketball as he was expecting to get fouled. Antetokounmpo went 10-for-23 from the free-throw line.
After Giannis got rid of the ball after winning the jump ball, Khris Middleton had to chase it down before going out of bounds, forcing Miami to foul Jrue Holiday as a result. Holiday went 1-for-2, giving the Heat all they needed for Jimmy Butler's game-tying bucket to send the game into overtime.
The Bucks failed to make any proper adjustments to stop Miami's run in trimming the deficit, with Jimmy Butler wreaking havoc in the half court.
Giannis Antetokounmpo discussed the lack of adjustments to force Butler into tough shots or give up the ball.
"Maybe we could have double-teamed him to make (Butler) pass," Antetokounmpo said. "Maybe we could have switched the matchup for two to three minutes to give Jrue a break."
Jimmy Butler ended up with 42 points on 51.5% shooting, including 30.0% from 3-point range, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Giannis Antetokounmpo on the Bucks coming up short this postseason
When Giannis Antetokounmpo was asked by The Athletic's Eric Nehm if he views the season as a failure with championship aspirations put to dust, he said:
"There is no failure in sports," Giannis said. "There are good days, bad days. Some days, you are able to be successful. Some days, you're not. Some days, it's your turn. Some days, it's not your turn. And that's what sports about. You don't always win. Some others going to win. This year, someone else going to win. It's as simple as that."
He appeared to be furious at the start of his response but turned it down midway as he wanted to get his point clearer in a nonpersonal way.
Giannis talked about how Michael Jordan didn't win a championship in nine of his 15 seasons. The two-time MVP made an insightful comparison on how not everyone will always get or win what they work hard for each year as there will always be steps to it.
From Giannis' perspective, he feels grateful that he was able to lead Milwaukee to its first championship in 50 years in 2021 when the Bucks defeated the Phoenix Suns in six games. He plans to be back next season with the team with the goal of bouncing back and chasing another championship.