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Bucks fans sent team off to Phoenix for Finals
There was little time to rest for Milwaukee Bucks players and fans. After 25,000 fans packed the Deer District Saturday night, hundreds of people greeted the Bucks as they touched down in Milwaukee after 2 a.m., before sending them off again Sunday evening.
MILWAUKEE - There was little time to rest for Milwaukee Bucks players and fans. After 25,000 fans packed the Deer District Saturday night, hundreds of people greeted the Bucks as they touched down in Milwaukee after 2 a.m., before sending them off again Sunday evening. The Bucks say they're planning for even bigger crowds during the finals.
The marketing team says before Game 6, they were counting about 1,000 people filing in through the gates every five to seven minutes. That Bucks hype train is charging on, from the Pro Shop to just about anywhere you look in Milwaukee.
As this city rallies around its team from the moment the clock struck zero and the Bucks clinched their third NBA Finals appearance in franchise history, the celebrations in Milwaukee just haven't stopped, like at Signature terminal after 2 a.m., when hundreds of fans gathered to greet players and coaches as they returned.
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"A few of them stopped by us," said a fan. "You know, it was cool. We talked to Bobby. Thanasis was going crazy. The whole energy in Milwaukee's just crazy right now."
Even as the sun rose for another day, the Fear the Deer fanfare was only building.
"You can tell Milwaukee's been waiting for this for 47 years, and they're ready to take advantage," said Dustin Godsey, chief marketing officer for the Bucks and Fiserv Forum.
Fans found the Pro Shop stocked with new NBA Finals gear, even busier than team officials expected.
"This is, you know, what we're all in this for," said Godsey. "It's just really exciting to see what this has meant to the city this entire playoff run."
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That playoff run now shifts to Phoenix for Game 1 and Game 2 of the NBA Finals.
On Sunday evening, fans once again lined Layton Avenue to send the team off in style, hoping the Bucks can bring a little Milwaukee momentum along for the flight.
"It was a dream come true, honestly," said a fan. "I woke up this morning. I thought we were still dreaming from last night, but I feel good, though."
Godsey said Sunday the Bucks were putting the finishing touches on details for watch parties and perhaps other events, with Game 1 set for Tuesday night in Phoenix.