2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks season

2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks season
Head coachGeorge Karl
General managerErnie Grunfeld
OwnerHerb Kohl
ArenaBradley Center
Results
Record42–40 (.512)
PlaceDivision: 4th (Central)
Conference: 7th (Eastern)
Playoff finishFirst round
(lost to Nets 2–4)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
TelevisionWCGV-TV
Fox Sports Net North
(Jim Paschke, Jon McGlocklin)
RadioWTMJ

The 2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks season was the 35th season for the Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association.[1] For the first time since the 1993–94 season, Glenn Robinson was not on the opening day roster. During the off-season, the Bucks acquired Toni Kukoč from the Atlanta Hawks.[2][3]

The Bucks played around .500 in winning percentage with an 8–8 start to the regular season, but then fell below .500 as the team lost seven of their next nine games. The Bucks soon recovered and won 10 of their 14 games in January, and held a 25–23 record at the All-Star break.[4] At mid-season, just before the trading deadline, the Bucks traded All-Star guard Ray Allen to the Seattle SuperSonics in exchange for All-Star guard Gary Payton, and Desmond Mason.[5][6][7] With the addition of Payton and Mason, the Bucks won eight of their final nine games of the season, finishing in fourth place in the Central Division with a 42–40 record, and earning the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference.[8]

Sam Cassell averaged 19.7 points and 5.8 assists per game, while Payton averaged 19.6 points, 7.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game in 28 games after the trade, and Michael Redd provided the team with 15.1 points per game, and also led them with 182 three-point field goals. In addition, Desmond Mason contributed 14.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game in 28 games, while Tim Thomas provided with 13.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, and Kukoč contributed 11.6 points, 3.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Meanwhile, Anthony Mason averaged 7.2 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, Jason Caffey provided with 5.8 points and 3.5 rebounds per game, Dutch rookie center Dan Gadzuric contributed 3.4 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, Ervin Johnson averaged 2.2 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, and Joel Pryzbilla provided with 1.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, but only played just 32 games due to injury.[9]

Despite a stellar season before the mid-season trade, Allen was not selected for the 2003 NBA All-Star Game in Atlanta, Georgia;[10] Allen averaged 21.3 points per game, and contributed 123 three-point field goals in 47 games with the Bucks.[9] Payton finished in eleventh place in Defensive Player of the Year voting,[11] while Redd finished in second place in Sixth Man of the Year voting, behind Bobby Jackson of the Sacramento Kings, and with Kukoč finishing in tenth place;[11] Redd also finished in twelfth place in Most Improved Player voting.[11]

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 2003 NBA playoffs, the Bucks faced off against the 2nd–seeded, and Atlantic Division champion New Jersey Nets, who were led by the trio of All-Star guard Jason Kidd, Kenyon Martin, and second-year star Richard Jefferson. The Nets took a 2–1 series lead, but the Bucks managed to win Game 4 at home in overtime, 119–114 at the Bradley Center. However, after losing Game 5 on the road, 89–82 at the Continental Airlines Arena, the Bucks lost Game 6 to the Nets at the Bradley Center, 113–101, thus losing the series in six games.[12][13][14] The Nets would advance to the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year, but would lose to the San Antonio Spurs in six games in the 2003 NBA Finals.[15][16][17]

The Bucks finished 17th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 665,966 at the Bradley Center during the regular season.[9][18] Following the season, Payton signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers,[19][20][21] while Cassell and Johnson were both traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves,[22][23] head coach George Karl was fired,[24][25] and Caffey and Anthony Mason both retired.

Draft picks

Main article: 2002 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 13 Marcus Haislip PF  United States Tennessee
2 34 Dan Gadzuric C  Netherlands UCLA
2 41 Ronald Murray SG  United States Shaw
2 47 Chris Owens PF  United States Texas

Roster

2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From
F 35 Jason Caffey 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 256 lb (116 kg) 1973–06–12 Alabama
G 10 Sam Cassell 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1969–11–18 Florida State
C 50 Dan Gadzuric 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1978–02–02 UCLA
F/C 12 Marcus Haislip 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1980–12–22 Tennessee
C 40 Ervin Johnson 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1967–12–21 New Orleans
F 7 Toni Kukoč 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 1968–09–18 Croatia
F 17 Anthony Mason 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1966–12–14 Tennessee State
G/F 24 Desmond Mason 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 222 lb (101 kg) 1977–10–11 Oklahoma State
G 20 Gary Payton 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1968–07–23 Oregon State
C 6 Joel Przybilla 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1979–10–10 Minnesota
G/F 22 Michael Redd 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1979–08–24 Ohio State
F/C 31 Jamal Sampson 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 257 lb (117 kg) 1983–05–13 California
F 5 Tim Thomas 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1977–02–26 Villanova
Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Roster

Regular season

Season standings

Central Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Detroit Pistons 50 32 .610 – 30–11 20–21 19–9
x-Indiana Pacers 48 34 .585 2 32–9 16–25 19–9
x-New Orleans Hornets 47 35 .573 3 29–12 18–23 17–11
x-Milwaukee Bucks 42 40 .512 8 25–16 17–24 16–12
e-Atlanta Hawks 35 47 .427 15 26–15 9–32 14–14
e-Chicago Bulls 30 52 .366 20 27–14 3–38 12–16
e-Toronto Raptors 24 58 .293 26 15–26 9–32 10–18
e-Cleveland Cavaliers 17 65 .207 33 14–27 3–38 5–23
#
Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Detroit Pistons 50 32 .610 –
2 y-New Jersey Nets 49 33 .598 1
3 x-Indiana Pacers 48 34 .585 2
4 x-Philadelphia 76ers 48 34 .585 2
5 x-New Orleans Hornets 47 35 .573 3
6 x-Boston Celtics 44 38 .537 6
7 x-Milwaukee Bucks 42 40 .512 8
8 x-Orlando Magic 42 40 .512 8
9 e-New York Knicks 37 45 .451 13
10 e-Washington Wizards 37 45 .451 13
11 e-Atlanta Hawks 35 47 .427 15
12 e-Chicago Bulls 30 52 .366 20
13 e-Miami Heat 25 57 .305 25
14 e-Toronto Raptors 24 58 .293 26
15 e-Cleveland Cavaliers 17 65 .207 33

Game log

2002–03 game log
Total: 42–40 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0)
October: 0–1 (home: 0–0; road: 0–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 October 30, 2002 @ Philadelphia L 93–95 First Union Center
19,569 		0–1
November: 6–6 (home: 4–2; road: 2–4)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
2 November 2, 2002 Orlando L 90–100 Michael Redd (17) Toni Kukoc (12) Kevin Ollie (5) Bradley Center
16,713 		0–2
3 November 4, 2002 @ New York W 97–88 Dan Gadzuric (10) Madison Square Garden
18,100 		1–2
4 November 6, 2002 New Jersey W 99–93 Bradley Center
14,539 		2–2
5 November 7, 2002 @ Minnesota L 110–114 Target Center
14,776 		2–3
6 November 9, 2002 Philadelphia W 110–105 Bradley Center
16,782 		3–3
7 November 13, 2002 Chicago W 108–101 Bradley Center
14,036 		4–3
8 November 15, 2002 @ Indiana L 100–103 Conseco Fieldhouse
16,010 		4–4
9 November 16, 2002 Boston W 104–85 Bradley Center
18,717 		5–4
10 November 19, 2002 Miami L 93–97 Bradley Center
13,632 		5–5
11 November 22, 2002 @ Golden State W 95–91 The Arena in Oakland
12,170 		6–5
12 November 24, 2002 @ L. A. Lakers L 99–111 STAPLES Center
18,997 		6–6
13 November 25, 2002 @ Phoenix L 81–86 America West Arena
12,986 		6–7
December: 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
January: 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
February: 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
March: 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
April: 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
2002–03 schedule

Playoffs

2003 playoff game log
First Round: 2–4 (home: 1–2; road: 1–2)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 April 19 @ New Jersey L 96–109 Tim Thomas (25) Desmond Mason (8) Gary Payton (10) Continental Airlines Arena
16,102 		0–1
2 April 22 @ New Jersey W 88–85 Gary Payton (22) Anthony Mason (8) Gary Payton (7) Continental Airlines Arena
17,633 		1–1
3 April 24 New Jersey L 101–103 Sam Cassell (24) Tim Thomas (11) Gary Payton (8) Bradley Center
17,539 		1–2
4 April 26 New Jersey W 119–114 (OT) Toni Kukoč (23) Desmond Mason (8) Gary Payton (14) Bradley Center
18,391 		2–2
5 April 29 @ New Jersey L 82–89 Toni Kukoč (18) Desmond Mason (12) Gary Payton (5) Continental Airlines Arena
16,601 		2–3
6 May 1 New Jersey L 101–113 Gary Payton (24) Tim Thomas (6) Gary Payton (8) Bradley Center
18,717 		2–4
2003 schedule

Player statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Ray Allen 47 46 35.8 43.7 39.5 91.3 4.6 3.5 1.2 0.2 21.3
Sam Cassell 78 77 34.6 47.0 36.2 86.1 4.4 5.8 1.1 0.2 19.7
Gary Payton 28 28 38.8 46.6 29.4 74.6 3.1 7.4 1.4 0.3 19.6
Michael Redd 82 14 28.2 46.9 43.8 80.5 4.5 1.4 1.2 0.2 15.1
Desmond Mason 28 25 34.0 47.4 29.4 76.5 6.7 2.4 0.7 0.4 14.8
Tim Thomas 80 70 29.5 44.3 36.6 78.0 4.9 1.3 0.9 0.6 13.3
Toni Kukoč 63 0 27.0 43.2 36.1 70.6 4.2 3.7 1.3 0.5 11.6
Anthony Mason 65 58 32.6 48.6 0.0 71.8 6.4 3.2 0.5 0.2 7.2
Jason Caffey 51 16 17.5 45.6 0.0 65.1 3.5 0.7 0.4 0.3 5.8
Kevin Ollie 53 4 21.3 45.9 20.0 74.7 1.9 3.4 0.7 0.1 5.7
Marcus Haislip 39 8 11.3 43.1 25.0 68.4 1.4 0.2 0.2 0.5 4.1
Dan Gadzuric 49 30 15.5 48.3 0.0 51.8 4.0 0.2 0.4 1.1 3.4
Ervin Johnson 69 17 17.0 45.2 0.0 68.2 4.3 0.3 0.5 0.9 2.2
Ronald Murray 12 0 3.5 34.6 0.0 62.5 0.1 0.3 0.3 0.0 1.9
Joel Przybilla 32 17 17.1 39.1 0.0 50.0 4.5 0.4 0.3 1.4 1.5
Jamal Sampson 5 0 1.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.2 0.2 0.0 0.0

Playoffs

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Gary Payton 6 6 41.8 42.9 6.7 70.0 3.0 8.7 1.3 0.2 18.5
Tim Thomas 6 5 31.8 46.2 57.1 71.9 4.8 1.3 0.5 1.0 17.8
Sam Cassell 6 6 36.2 47.0 52.4 93.3 3.2 2.7 0.5 0.2 17.2
Toni Kukoč 6 0 30.7 49.2 37.9 70.0 4.2 3.7 2.2 0.2 14.8
Desmond Mason 6 6 34.0 50.9 0.0 71.0 7.0 0.8 1.0 0.7 13.0
Michael Redd 6 0 21.3 40.4 25.0 92.9 3.5 1.8 0.3 0.2 9.7
Marcus Haislip 2 1 12.0 66.7 0.0 50.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 0.5 5.0
Anthony Mason 6 0 26.2 41.2 0.0 69.2 3.3 0.2 0.5 0.2 3.8
Ervin Johnson 6 3 12.7 37.5 0.0 0.0 4.0 0.5 0.5 0.8 1.0
Joel Przybilla 4 3 8.3 100.0 0.0 0.0 2.5 0.3 0.0 0.5 0.5

Player statistics citation:[9]

Awards and records

Transactions

Overview

Players Added

Via draft

Via trade

Via free agency

Players Lost

Via trade

Via free agency

Trades

August 2, 2002
 To Milwaukee Bucks---- To Atlanta Hawks----
February 20, 2003 To Milwaukee Bucks---- To Seattle SuperSonics----

Free agents

Player Signed Former team
Kevin Ollie
 September 6, 2002 Indiana Pacers
Cedric Henderson September 25, 2002 Golden State Warriors

Player Transactions Citation:[26]

References

  1. ^ 2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks
  2. ^ Broussard, Chris (August 3, 2002). "PRO BASKETBALL: NOTEBOOK; Hawks Gain a Scorer in Trade for Robinson". The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  3. ^ Smith, Sam (October 30, 2002). "Eastern Conference Capsules". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  4. ^ "NBA Games Played on February 6, 2003". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  5. ^ Popper, Steve (February 21, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; Sonics Deal Payton to Bucks for Allen". The New York Times. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  6. ^ Heisler, Mark (February 21, 2003). "Losses Will Fit Seattle Like a Glove". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  7. ^ Nichols, Rachel (February 21, 2003). "Sonics Trade Payton to Bucks". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  8. ^ "2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  9. ^ a b c d "2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
  10. ^ "2003 NBA All-Star Game: West 155, East 145 (2OT)". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
  11. ^ a b c "2002–03 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
  12. ^ Robbins, Liz (May 2, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; Nets Finish Off Bucks and Move On to Celtics". The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  13. ^ Kerber, Fred (May 2, 2003). "Nets Get It Done – Boot Bucks Behind Kidd, K-Mart". New York Post. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  14. ^ "2003 NBA Eastern Conference First Round: Bucks vs. Nets". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
  15. ^ "Spurs Defeat Nets to Win N.B.A. Title". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 15, 2003. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  16. ^ Heisler, Mark (June 16, 2003). "Spurs Reduce the 'Risk". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  17. ^ "2003 NBA Finals: Nets vs. Spurs". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
  18. ^ "2002–03 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
  19. ^ Popper, Steve (July 11, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; Malone Agrees to Play for Lakers, Taking a $17.7 Million Cut in Pay". The New York Times. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  20. ^ Brown, Tim (July 9, 2003). "It's Glove in Hand". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  21. ^ Neiman, David (July 9, 2003). "Payton, Lakers Agree on Contract". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  22. ^ Broussard, Chris (June 28, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; In Fallout from Draft, Bucks Trade Cassell". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  23. ^ "Bucks Send Cassell to Minnesota". United Press International. June 27, 2003. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  24. ^ "PRO BASKETBALL; Karl Is Gone as Bucks Coach". The New York Times. Associated Press. July 21, 2003. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  25. ^ "Karl Is Out as Coach of Bucks". Los Angeles Times. July 21, 2003. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
  26. ^ "2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks Transactions". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 13, 2022.

See also

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