Giannis rejects calling Bucks' season a failure: 'It's steps to success'

Giannis Antetokounmpo defended the Milwaukee Bucks' season Wednesday after the top-ranked side was bounced from the playoffs by the No. 8 seed Miami Heat.

When The Athletic's Eric Nehm asked postgame if the result meant the Bucks' campaign was a failure, Antetokounmpo ardently refuted the notion.

"You asked me the same question last year, Eric. Do you get a promotion every year in your job? No, right? So, every year you work is a failure? Yes or no? No. Every year you work, you work toward something ... you work toward a goal. It's not a failure. It's steps to success."

Antetokounmpo continued: "Michael Jordan played 15 years, won six championships - the other nine years was a failure? ... There's no failure in sports. There's good days, bad days; some days you're 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 are about. You don't always win. ... This year, somebody else is going to win, simple as that.

"We're going to come back next year, try to be better, try to build good habits, try to play better, not have a 10-day stretch with playing bad basketball, and, hopefully, we can win a championship. So, 50 years from 1971 to 2021 that we didn't win a championship, it was 50 years of failure? No, it was not. It was steps to it. We were able to win one, hopefully, we can win another one."

The MVP finalist, who missed Games 2 and 3 due to a lower back contusion, finished with 38 points and 20 rebounds in the 128-126 overtime loss. However, Milwaukee squandered a 16-point lead in the fourth quarter thanks to a resilient Jimmy Butler. The Heat star scored 14 of his 40 points in the fourth, including a stunning last-second finish while falling away from the basket to force the extra frame.

The Bucks never led in overtime as Miami capitalized on its momentum to set up a second-round clash against the New York Knicks. It's the first time since 2018 that the Bucks have failed to progress past the first round.

Head coach Mike Budenholzer was also asked if he viewed the season as a failure following the opening-round exit, but he didn't agree with the term.

"This team has incredibly high expectations," he said. "(General manager) Jon Horst has put together an amazing roster. The ownership has done what they're supposed to do. We made a push. We were the No. 1 seed. But all that matters is the playoffs, so I think we're just disappointed. I would not use that word.

"We're disappointed. We're frustrated. It hurts. But I said it all years, we love this team. We love these guys. I believe in them. We believe in them. We didn't get it done tonight. But to me, just disappointed, hurt, frustrated, I think is more characteristic of how we feel tonight."