Milwaukee Bucks’ international profile grows with trip to Abu Dhabi

The NBA has continued to spherical out its slate of worldwide competitions within the 2022-23 calendar, asserting the addition of one other regular-season sport in Paris between Chicago and Detroit on Jan. 19.

The Milwaukee Bucks have been a part of the final regular-season contest in France in January, 2020, earlier than the coronavirus pandemic postponed not solely that season however put the league’s international efforts on pause till this coming season.

Since drafting Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2013, the Bucks have been a extra constant worldwide draw for the NBA and the workforce will head to Abu Dhabi within the United Arab Emirates for a pair of preseason video games towards Atlanta on Oct. 6 and eight.

They would be the first video games the league has performed within the Center East.

“It’s definitely an honor for our group to go and signify our metropolis Milwaukee, journey overseas and simply take all of the greatness that’s Milwaukee and share it,” Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer stated in the course of the playoffs when the information was introduced.

“Our league, the NBA, does a tremendous job to try to develop our sport, share our sport overseas.”

After taking part in two video games in China in 2008 following the collection of Yi Jianlian in that summer time’s draft, the workforce was not tabbed for the worldwide stage once more till 2015 when it performed in London.

“We’ve turn into in a brief matter of time – and there’s definitely the Giannis impact to that – however sort of our success, our publicity, profitable a championship, having success internationally, constructing consciousness, the place our social viewers has grown is an actual indicator and catalyst for the league,” Bucks president Peter Feigin stated.

“Such outstanding success from a small market that simply tells you what a world sport it’s and the way issues have modified that the Bucks are actually one of many key, consultant groups of the league on a world platform. Which is simply actually cool.”

Whereas particular person groups are beholden to the league for essentially the most half, they do have a voice in the case of the worldwide journeys. And for the Bucks, taking part in a regular-season sport abroad for the third time was not interesting.

That stated, there might be logistical hurdles to beat as Abu Dhabi is an almost 17-hour flight. By placing two video games on the schedule and spreading the journey out over about 5 days, it would doubtless permit the Bucks to permit household and vital others and make it extra of a team-building kind of occasion – however ensuring the workforce would have the ability prepare for the beginning of the common season and one other championship run was a part of the calculus.

“It’s an enormous, large deal,” Feigin stated of getting basic supervisor Jon Horst and Budenholzer and your entire basketball employees on board. “You gotta take into consideration what this does. We consider all the pieces on the way it impacts our aggressive stance.

“Does it take weeks of coaching off the schedule? What does it to imply to the cadence of restoration? What does the journey imply?

“There’s an actual level the place you consider what 30 hours of journey does to a bunch of professional athletes early on within the coaching system. The important thing for us and what’s labored nicely is (getting) all people concerned and all people getting purchase in to get it performed.”

At that time of the late summer time, Giannis and Thanasis Antetokounmpo might have already ramped up because it has been reported internationally that the Greek nationwide workforce expects them to play within the EuroBasket match, which runs Sept. 1-18. 

If previous NBA precedent is an indicator, the Bucks would doubtless open their coaching camp in Milwaukee the final week of September so the remainder of its gamers can be able to play video games that early in October.

After all, the most important a part of the journey for the league is making a foothold within the Center East and increasing the attain of the league – NBA commissioner Adam Silver acknowledged as a lot when asserting the situation of video games within the UAE in April.

However it additionally places the league and the Bucks and Hawks ready the place they must reply for collaborating in video games in a rustic that the US Division of State has famous has “vital human rights points” and has criminalized the LGBTQ+ group.

“For us we stand firmly with the league and Adam, the NBA (however) we now have made no secrets and techniques and we’ve sort of taken the main stance – as I feel the Atlanta Hawks have – on supporting and advancing rights,” Feigin stated. “Whether or not they be girls’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights and unwavering for our values that are equality and respect and freedom of expression. So we take these with us in every single place we go.

“I feel that’s sort of our worth proposition is this provides us a platform the place we definitely stay the NBA/Milwaukee Bucks and we are going to all the time have a dedication to supporting and advancing rights and values of equality and respect.”

Contact Jim Owczarski at jowczarski@jrn.com. Comply with him on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat at @JimOwczarski or Fb at fb.com/JOwczarski.