Years ago, I attended a church where a number of Milwaukee Bucks players were regular members. The senior pastor often hosted them at his home for dinner and social engagements. He had their jerseys and went to games. But as big of a fan as he was, he would take periodic sabbaticals from watching games whenever they lost. He candidly admitted that his reason for doing so was that their losses caused him more grief than the players themselves experienced. Now, that’s commitment! That may sound extreme, but such an identification with a home team’s performance betrays a larger cultural phenomenon whereby we tend to live vicariously through our favorite mascots and athletic heroes — they are an extension of the collective ‘us’. If they lose, we lost, and vice-versa.
On July 20th, 2021, Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to victory in the NBA finals — the team’s first in 50 years. Which ultimately means Antetokounmpo led the city of Milwaukee to victory. The teams success is our own. Antetokounmpo has delivered the city from the ignominy and reproach of being known as a “terrible city.” (The moniker, for the record, is far from deserved; Milwaukee is fine place to live once you get used to the winters) The championship parade was bonkers.
A workplace acquaintance asked me if I was heading to the Deer District to catch the game. Are you kidding me? I hated crowds before the pandemic. Yet, from the comfort of my living room, I observed throngs of adoring fans who in the words of one of our City Council members, “deserve applause for showing the world how passionate and dedicated our city is … The world saw our fans — of nearly every race and ethnicity — uniting in support of the team and filling the Deer District and the Fiserv Forum.”
At first glance, it appeared to me that professional sports attained the the kind of religious appeal that going to church once signified in our society. We gather together, celebrate and mourn together, and participate in something collectively that provides meaning for the day to day. That is, until I noticed that the subsequent coverage of the Bucks’ 105-98 triumph over the Suns (sorry…had to rub it in) was immediately followed by an ad for championship merchandise. If this is a religion, it’s one that really needs our money. Whatever cultural and ethnic transcendence achieved by sport has come with a cost, perhaps in service to commerce. The game’s follow up segments abounded with the ever familiar ‘glory story’ of the poor immigrant who arrived in Milwaukee with nothing…and through grit, and sheer determination worked his way to success. Yes, the Law $ells 10 times out of 10. But The Law also kills, and its glory quickly fades away with one’s athleticism and profitability (cf. 2 Cor 3:6-11).
This victory hasn’t brought rest … not to me at least. No, in fact it has intensified my anxiety. Now Milwaukee has to keep winning to retain what one of my coworkers called a “well earned victory”… and that fragile reputation. As the old cliché goes, Giannis (and we as a city) is only as good as his most recent accomplishment — at least in the eyes of the watching world. He and we are gonna have to work to maintain our status and carry the Bucks’ notoriety. The insecurities compound: will we make it to the finals next year? If so, will we win? Can we keep winning and rack up championship rings the way Jordan led the Bulls to countless wins in the 90’s?
They can’t take our win away, but the title will be passed on next season. Nothing can undo the historic reality of our championship year, but the relevancy thereof Giannis Antetokounmpo won’t last. It was only while viewing the Finals that I learned about our previous victory 50 years ago under Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson. As Milwaukeeans, we will only maintain our newfound identity (and bring in more revenue) if we keep winning championships to prove our worth.
There’s a better victory that saves and gives us a name that doesn’t depend on our performance. This victory is ours through faith in Christ, who gives us “grace upon grace” freeing us from the incessant need to keep justifying our existence. Christ’s victory was truly one for the ages. A passerby at work remarked to me the night before Game 6, “if the Bucks win tomorrow night, we win — even though we didn’t do any of the hard work!” Yeah … I think she gets it. Go Bucks!
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