What's Crackalackin'?
The Bucks play 41 home games per season at the Bradley Center. That's 41 opportunities, 41 events, 41 storylines and 41 memories. I was at the game Saturday night and as I continue to digest what I saw, I realize that this is the reason why I am willing to pay a few extra pennies for a new venue to watch those 41 events.
I watched the Bucks lose their fourth straight game, a 113-111 setback to Utah. It wasn't pretty, but as it evolved I watched Michael Redd score a franchise-record 57 points. Redd broke a record by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar that stood for 30 years and almost bringing the Bucks back from a 24-point hole by himself. He did it the way he has done it since he arrived as a second-round pick out of Ohio State in 2000 -- within the context of trying to win ... trying to help the team.
I have history with Mike from the time he got here. I watched him develop in practice as a rookie, getting no rewards playing behind Ray Allen and Sam Cassell. I also watched him get better, push Ray hard and make him better (Ray nicknamed him "the left-handed bandit" for victimizing his teammates on the practice floor). I also watched him wait his turn as the Bucks went through various changes from coaches to trades of players to GMs. I just sit and think how close he was to becoming a Dallas Maverick, and how he had to make a life choice to stay here with team that gave him his chance. He signed the contract, and he's living up to it.
I have also watched him stay the same preacher's kid from Columbus, Ohio, that he was when he arrived: never arrogant, aloof or rude, always thankful and reflective. Never getting caught up in his All-Star status in 2003 or looking for special treatment because he is the star of the team now. Now, on one of those 41 opportunities, I watch him become for at least one night one of the all-time greats when you think of the Bucks. He deserved a better fate than what he got after hitting the game-tying three-pointer.
But it is what it is, a four-game losing streak, which makes it bittersweet. It was one of the 41 chances you get here in Milwaukee during an NBA season. I have seen a lot of great things during those times, I just enjoy the access to those opportunities more now and don't take them for granted.
The Bucks play 41 home games per season at the Bradley Center. That's 41 opportunities, 41 events, 41 storylines and 41 memories. I was at the game Saturday night and as I continue to digest what I saw, I realize that this is the reason why I am willing to pay a few extra pennies for a new venue to watch those 41 events.
I watched the Bucks lose their fourth straight game, a 113-111 setback to Utah. It wasn't pretty, but as it evolved I watched Michael Redd score a franchise-record 57 points. Redd broke a record by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar that stood for 30 years and almost bringing the Bucks back from a 24-point hole by himself. He did it the way he has done it since he arrived as a second-round pick out of Ohio State in 2000 -- within the context of trying to win ... trying to help the team.
I have history with Mike from the time he got here. I watched him develop in practice as a rookie, getting no rewards playing behind Ray Allen and Sam Cassell. I also watched him get better, push Ray hard and make him better (Ray nicknamed him "the left-handed bandit" for victimizing his teammates on the practice floor). I also watched him wait his turn as the Bucks went through various changes from coaches to trades of players to GMs. I just sit and think how close he was to becoming a Dallas Maverick, and how he had to make a life choice to stay here with team that gave him his chance. He signed the contract, and he's living up to it.
I have also watched him stay the same preacher's kid from Columbus, Ohio, that he was when he arrived: never arrogant, aloof or rude, always thankful and reflective. Never getting caught up in his All-Star status in 2003 or looking for special treatment because he is the star of the team now. Now, on one of those 41 opportunities, I watch him become for at least one night one of the all-time greats when you think of the Bucks. He deserved a better fate than what he got after hitting the game-tying three-pointer.
But it is what it is, a four-game losing streak, which makes it bittersweet. It was one of the 41 chances you get here in Milwaukee during an NBA season. I have seen a lot of great things during those times, I just enjoy the access to those opportunities more now and don't take them for granted.
Steve Haywood is the host of That Being Said, which airs weeknights at 6 p.m. on Milwaukees ESPN Radio 1510 Days / 1290 Nights. A lifelong Milwaukee resident, Steve has been working on the radio since 1996 and also is executive producer of Sports Perspectives on MATA Community Media.
After graduating from Milwaukee Tech High School in 1985, Haywood attended college at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he graduated in 1991.
He has covered a number of major events, including the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in 2002 and the NBA All-Star Game in 2003.
Haywood, 39, is married with two kids, a dumb cat and a dog described as a real curmudgeon.
