What will it take for the Milwaukee Bucks to contend for a championship?

Milwaukee Bucks (Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports)

Over the last three seasons, no team has accomplished as much as the Milwaukee Bucks in the regular season. With the NBA’s highest winning percentage over the last three seasons, the Bucks have developed a clear identity as one of the game’s most sturdy defensive teams while playing through a perennial MVP and rising fan favorite in Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Yet the Bucks aren’t feared amongst NBA circles like their slogan would suggest. After unraveling in the second round of last year’s playoffs against a Miami Heat club barreling straight toward the NBA Finals, Milwaukee simply isn’t viewed by many as a true championship contender. So what’s it going to take for them to reach that point?

Every basketball fans know the value that Giannis Antetokounmpo brings to the Milwaukee Bucks, but it takes much more than one man to win a championship.

To answer that question, we must first look back at the history of the game. Champions aren’t crowned because of the efforts of one player, but by the collective of the team. Of course, teams only reach the championship because of the efforts of their star, but every great leader has to instill trust in his teammates and Giannis hasn’t had that consistently in the postseason yet.

A two-time MVP who manages to get better with every passing season, the stormcloud of lackluster postseason runs won’t clear from atop Antetokounmpo’s head if his teammates aren’t ready to tackle the challenge ahead of them.