Bucks believe better stability, cohesiveness and health should help them regain status as contenders

MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo's blunt response to a question about whether the Milwaukee Bucks' offseason moves could get them back to the conference finals or NBA Finals underscored how far they've fallen the last couple of years.

''We've got to get out of the first round,'' the two-time MVP said during the Bucks' Media Day event Monday. ''Let's start with that.''

The Bucks captured an NBA title in 2021 but have won just one playoff series in the three years since. They're coming off a tumultuous 2022-23 season that included acquiring star guard Damian Lillard just before training camp, firing coach Adrian Griffin at midseason, losing Antetokounmpo for the playoffs due to a calf injury and falling to the Indiana Pacers in the opening round of the playoffs.

Now that Antetokounmpo's had a year to adjust to playing alongside Lillard, the Bucks believe they can reassert themselves as championship contenders. Lillard, a seven-time all-NBA guard who didn't receive a single all-NBA vote last season, said he feels ''way, way better'' going into this season.

''I do know that my teammates and my coaches, they're going to get the real version of me this year,'' Lillard said.

The Bucks added veteran free agents Taurean Prince, Delon Wright and Gary Trent Jr. to boost their depth. They also are healthy again, for the most part, as they prepare to begin training camp.

Khris Middleton, who has been limited to a total of 88 regular-season games over the last two seasons due to a variety of injuries, said he's feeling better after undergoing surgeries on both of his ankles. Rivers said Middleton will participate in camp but won't be doing a lot of live action early on.

''I will be on the court as much as possible during this week, so we won't be playing catch-up as much,'' Middleton said.

If the Bucks do regain their status as one of the league's top teams, an event that took place during Milwaukee's most recent playoff loss will serve as the launching point. Lillard spoke Monday about a conversation he and Antetokounmpo had before a playoff game that both were missing due to injuries.

''Everybody went out to warm up, and me and him were the only two people in the locker room,'' Lillard said. ''I just told him, I was like, ‘I don't know what's going to happen, but me and you have got to get connected. We've got to get something done.' He agreed. Once he agreed, the conversation went a whole different way after that. It became a much more open conversation.''

The two of them didn't work out together during the offseason, as Antetokounmpo had a busy summer that included playing for Greece at the Paris Olympics and getting married. But they did communicate frequently and believe they got to know each other better.

Lillard said it all started with that locker-room chat.

''From there it just went into the summer, just communication,'' Lillard said. ''I think that's more important than us getting on the court and working out together and all that stuff. You can work out until you're blue in the face. As soon as I say something in a game or he says something in a game and it doesn't register or it's not being received, then it's not going to work how you want to work. I think that communication was open, and I think that was the most important thing.''

The Bucks' desire to improve their cohesiveness after a season of upheaval was reflected in their decision to leave town and hold their training camp at Irvine, California.

Rivers said he was just 10 days into his Bucks coaching tenure when he decided the team would be better off getting away for training camp and having more time to eat, work and travel together.

''No families, no friends around,'' Rivers said. ''Just us. I think that's good for our team.''

The chemistry should be better this year in part because Antetokounmpo and Lillard have spent the last year getting to know each other as teammates. They're discovering how they can bring out the best in each other and produce the most team success.

Antetokounmpo acknowledged that figuring out how each of them should adapt can be tricky because each of them had played so long and had enjoyed so much success before they were teammates. Antetokounmpo turns 30 in December, while Lillard is 34.

''It's definitely hard … at this moment of our careers to kind of change the habits you've created,'' Antetokounmpo said. ''But if you want to win, you have to do so. I think we both — me, him and the rest of our team — are willing to do whatever it takes to win.''

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