Longtime Bucks fan recalls 1971 championship excitement
MILWAUKEE - A longtime Milwaukee Bucks fan, who got in on the championship excitement in 1971, is still optimistic this year's team will make it all the way.
Times have changed, but one thing is certain: Fans have waited decades to celebrate another NBA title in Milwaukee.
An instant fan since the start of the Bucks franchise, Scotty Godshaw – in 1971 – knew he couldn't skip out on history in the making.
"As you can see, I've been collecting for many years," said Godshaw.
The die-hard fan knows every stat in the book and has been cheering for the Deer since the very start.
"Everybody was excited," Godshaw said of the 1971 championship title.
Scotty Godshaw's 1971 Championship mug
When the Bucks swept the Bullets in Baltimore, Godshaw found out when the team would be returning to the Cream City. He borrowed his dad's car, picked up a friend, and hurried to the airport.
"I was a month away from graduating from high school. I was 17," said Godshaw.
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Godshaw was among hundreds of others who welcomed the team home.
"Of course you can walk right into the terminal then; it was a different era," Godshaw said. "We were right up against the window...We got to see the Bucks come off the plane after they won."
Scotty Godshaw's bobblehead collection
Godshaw described an electricity that he was sure he'd experience again.
"This was a picture of the Milwaukee Sentinel they came out with the day after they won. It says: ‘Bucks New NBA Champions Sweep Series with the Bullets 118-106,'" said Godshaw. "I thought I'd have a whole collection of these."
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For the past 50 years, he has held out hope.
"I didn't forget how long," Godshaw said. "I'm thinking, this could be it."
Collecting memorabilia is just as special to him as watching the games.
"Even more so than Rogers or Favre, I have more Giannis bobbleheads than I have any other," Godshaw said. "I believe I have every Bango now, too. Then, of course, Eddie Doucette who was the original Bucks announcer."
Scotty Godshaw's bobblehead collection
And despite Giannis Antetokounmpo's injury, Godshaw isn't giving up.
"Oh my god, I mean talk about heartbreak city," said Godshaw, optimistic still. "They can do it, they got enough talent. They just got to play together and do what they gotta do."
Godshaw wasn't able to score tickets to the 1971 NBA Finals, but said he did attend a couple of playoff games that season.
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