1990–91 Milwaukee Bucks season

NBA professional basketball team season March 2026 August 2023 Milwaukee Bucks 1991 48 34 Central 3rd 4th Del Harris Del Harris Herb Kohl Bradley Center WCGV-TV Prime Sports Upper Midwest WTMJ First round(lost to 76ers 0–3) MIL The 1990–91 Milwaukee Bucks season was the 23rd season for the Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association. Milwaukee Bucks Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/ August 8, 2026 Season summary Off-season During the off-season, the Bucks acquired Frank Brickowski from the San Antonio Spurs, and acquired Danny Schayes from the Denver Nuggets. Associated Press A Trading Flurry Uncapped in NBA: Basketball: Ainge Goes to Portland, Schayes to Milwaukee, Pressey to San Antonio, Bol to Philadelphia After Salary Cap Raised by Nearly $2 Million Los Angeles Times August 2, 1990 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-08-02-sp-1396-story.html?_amp=true December 15, 2021 Hente Karl As Salary Cap Rises, Players Fly Around NBA The Washington Post August 2, 1990 https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1990/08/02/as-salary-cap-rises-players-fly-around-nba/95fad02d-0ad3-41df-b07a-f2f7f60f69dc/ November 22, 2022 Goldaper Sam N.B.A.: Even Newer Spurs Doing Fine The New York Times November 5, 1990 https://www.nytimes.com/1990/11/05/sports/nba-even-newer-spurs-doing-fine.html April 9, 2023 However, Larry Krystkowiak would miss the entire regular season due to a knee injury. Times Wire Services The Sidelines: Krystkowiak Lost for Season Los Angeles Times August 2, 1990 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-08-02-sp-1896-story.html November 22, 2022 Sports People: Pro Basketball: Krystkowiak Sidelined The New York Times August 18, 1990 https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/18/sports/sports-people-pro-basketball-krystkowiak-sidelined.html March 10, 2022 Regular season With the addition of Brickowski and Schayes, the Bucks posted an eight-game winning streak between December and January, which led to a 25–8 start to the regular season. However, the team lost ten of their next twelve games, which included a six-game losing streak in January, and later on held a 30–19 record at the All-Star break. NBA Games Played on February 7, 1991 Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/index.fcgi?month=2&day=7&year=1991 November 21, 2022 At mid-season, the Bucks traded scoring leader, and sixth man Ricky Pierce to the Seattle SuperSonics in exchange for All-Star guard Dale Ellis. Sports People: Pro Basketball: Bucks Trade Pierce for Sonics' Ellis The New York Times February 16, 1991 https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/16/sports/sports-people-pro-basketball-bucks-trade-pierce-for-sonics-ellis.html July 26, 2017 Associated Press Bucks Trade Pierce to SuperSonics for Ellis in an Exchange of Guards Los Angeles Times February 16, 1991 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-02-16-sp-1014-story.html September 5, 2022 Peoples John Ellis Exits in Trade with Bucks; Ricky Pierce Newest Sonic in Swap of Unhappy Guards The Seattle Times February 16, 1991 https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=19910216&slug=1266482 September 5, 2022 In April, the team signed free agent and former All-Star forward Adrian Dantley, as Ellis suffered a season-ending lower back injury. Associated Press Bucks Sign Dantley The New York Times April 3, 1991 https://www.nytimes.com/1991/04/03/sports/bucks-sign-dantley.html September 5, 2022 Associated Press Bucks Replace Injured Ellis by Signing Dantley: NBA: Milwaukee Gets 24.5-Point Career Scorer, But He Hadn't Played at All This Season Los Angeles Times April 3, 1991 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-04-03-sp-1524-story.html November 22, 2022 Bucks Lose Ellis, Sign Dantley United Press International April 2, 1991 https://www.upi.com/Archives/1991/04/02/Bucks-lose-Ellis-sign-Dantley/9044670568400/ November 22, 2022 The Bucks finished in third place in the Central Division with a 48–34 record, and earned the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. 1990–91 Milwaukee Bucks Schedule and Results Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams//1991_games.html October 16, 2021 The team also won their first 18 home games of the regular season, posted a 33–8 home record at the Bradley Center, and qualified for the NBA playoffs for the twelfth consecutive year. Ellis played a sixth man role off the bench, averaging 19.3 points per game in 21 games after the trade, while Jay Humphries averaged 15.2 points, 6.7 assists and 1.6 steals per game, and Alvin Robertson provided the team with 13.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.5 assists and led the league with 3.0 steals per game, and was also named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team. In addition, Brickowski provided with 12.6 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, while Fred Roberts contributed 10.8 points per game, Schayes averaged 10.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, and Jack Sikma contributed 10.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. Off the bench, Jeff Grayer contributed 6.4 points per game, and Brad Lohaus averaged 5.3 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. 1990–91 Milwaukee Bucks Roster and Stats Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/1991.html December 14, 2021 During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, and before the mid-season trade, Pierce and Robertson were both selected for the 1991 NBA All-Star Game, as members of the Eastern Conference All-Star team; it was Pierce's first and only All-Star appearance, and the fourth and final All-Star appearance for Robertson. Barnard Bill The Show of Shows for Magic: NBA: For Laker Guard, Making His 10th Appearance, Each and Every All-Star Game Is a Special Occasion Los Angeles Times February 10, 1991 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-02-10-sp-1467-story.html July 10, 2025 NBA.com Staff 1991 NBA All-Star Recap NBA.com September 13, 2021 https://www.nba.com/news/history-all-star-recap-1991 July 10, 2025 1991 NBA All-Star Game: East 116, West 114 Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/allstar/NBA_1991.html December 2, 2021 Meanwhile, Sikma was selected to participate in the NBA Three-Point Shootout, but withdrew and was replaced with Terry Porter of the Portland Trail Blazers. Associated Press All-Star Saturday Participants The Hour February 9, 1991 22 https://books.google.com/books?id=dwchAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA12&dq=1991+NBA+slam+dunk+roster&article_id=1433,1155810&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj00tPUuZyQAxXfnCYFHVURH0AQ6AF6BAgLEAM#v=onepage&q=1991%20NBA%20slam%20dunk%20roster&f=false October 11, 2025 Robertson also finished in third place in Defensive Player of the Year voting, Sports People: Pro Basketball: Rodman Is Named Defensive Player of Year The New York Times May 14, 1991 https://www.nytimes.com/1991/05/14/sports/sports-people-pro-basketball-rodman-is-named-defensive-player-of-year.html November 22, 2022 1990–91 NBA Awards Voting Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_1991.html January 3, 2022 while head coach Del Harris finished tied in fifth place in Coach of the Year voting. Chaney Gets Coaching Award, New Contract United Press International May 23, 1991 https://www.upi.com/Archives/1991/05/23/Chaney-gets-coaching-award-new-contract/1404674971200/ December 31, 2022 The Bucks finished eighth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 673,687 at the Bradley Center during the regular season. 1990–91 NBA Season Summary Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_1991.html February 24, 2026 NBA playoffs In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 1991 NBA playoffs, the Bucks faced off against the 5th–seeded Philadelphia 76ers, a team that featured All-Star forward Charles Barkley, All-Star guard Hersey Hawkins, and Armen Gilliam. After missing the entire regular season due to his knee injury, Krystkowiak returned to play in the team's first-round series against the 76ers; however, without Ellis, the Bucks lost the first two games to the 76ers at home at the Bradley Center, before losing Game 3 on the road, 121–100 at The Spectrum, thus losing the series in a three-game sweep. Associated Press Basketball: Barkley and 76ers Complete a Knockout The New York Times May 1, 1991 https://www.nytimes.com/1991/05/01/sports/basketball-barkley-and-76ers-complete-a-knockout.html October 16, 2021 76ers, Lakers Post Sweeps The Washington Post May 1, 1991 https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1991/05/01/76ers-lakers-post-sweeps/d4f47d82-e74f-4dfb-bce5-7708149447e3/ April 10, 2023 1991 NBA Eastern Conference First Round: 76ers vs. Bucks Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/1991-nba-eastern-conference-first-round-76ers-vs-bucks.html April 10, 2023 This would also be the Bucks' final NBA playoff appearance until the 1998–99 season, as what would follow was a seven-year playoff drought. Aftermath Following the season, Sikma retired. Draft picks 1990 NBA draft Round Pick Player Position Nationality College 1 16 Terry Mills PF Michigan 2 44 Steve Henson PG Kansas State Roster Milwaukee Bucks 1990–91 #00471B #FFFFFF #59A04F #000000 40 Frank Brickowski F 6 9 240 1959–08–14 Penn State 15 Lester Conner G 6 4 180 1959–09–17 Oregon State 7 Adrian Dantley F 6 5 208 1955–02–28 Notre Dame 3 Dale Ellis F 6 7 205 1960–08–06 Tennessee yes 20 Jeff Grayer G 6 5 200 1965–12–17 Iowa State 12 Steve Henson G 5 11 177 1968–02–02 Kansas State 24 Jay Humphries G 6 3 185 1962–10–17 Colorado 8 Frank Kornet F 6 9 225 1967–01–27 Vanderbilt 42 Larry Krystkowiak F 6 9 220 1964–09–23 Montana yes IN 54 Brad Lohaus F 6 11 230 1964–09–29 Iowa 31 Fred Roberts F 6 10 218 1960–08–14 BYU 21 Alvin Robertson G 6 3 185 1962–07–22 Arkansas 10 Danny Schayes C 6 11 235 1959–05–10 Syracuse 43 Jack Sikma C 6 11 230 1955–11–14 Illinois Wesleyan 11 Everette Stephens G 6 2 175 1966–10–21 Purdue Del Harris Mack Calvin Frank Hamblen Roster Notes Power forward Larry Krystkowiak was on the injured reserve list due to a knee injury, and missed the entire regular season; however, he was activated to play in the NBA playoffs. Regular season Season standings MIL MIL z - clinched division title y - clinched division title x - clinched playoff spot Game log Milwaukee Bucks 1991 #255325 #FFFFFF Total: 48–34 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0) Milwaukee Bucks November yes #59A04F #255325 1 0 1 1 |- | 1 || November 2, 1990 || @ Detroit | L 104–115 | | | | The Palace of Auburn Hills21,454 | 0–1 |- | 2 || November 3, 1990 || Minnesota | W 111–93 | | | | Bradley Center15,102 | 1–1 |- | 3 || November 6, 1990 || @ Miami | W 106–94 | | | | Miami Arena15,008 | 2–1 |- | 4 || November 8, 1990 || Philadelphia | W 141–111 |Jay Humphries (25) |Greg Anderson (9) |Alvin Robertson (12) | Bradley Center12,476 | 3–1 |- | 5 || November 9, 1990 || @ Washington | W 108–100 |Ricky Pierce (25) | | | Capital Centre8,829 | 4–1 |- | 6 || November 13, 1990 || Boston | W 119–91 | | | | Bradley Center15,321 | 5–1 |- | 7 || November 14, 1990 || @ New Jersey | L 95–112 | | | | Brendan Byrne Arena6,424 | 5–2 |- | 8 || November 16, 1990 || @ Cleveland | L 94–99 | | | | Coliseum at Richfield14,430 | 5–3 |- | 9 || November 17, 1990 || New Jersey | W 111–99 | | | | Bradley Center14,276 | 6–3 |- | 10 || November 19, 1990 || Utah | W 114–104 | | | | Bradley Center13,568 | 7–3 |- | 11 || November 21, 1990 || Atlanta | W 105–93 | | | | Bradley Center15,279 | 8–3 |- | 12 || November 24, 1990 || @ New York | W 107–97 | | | | Madison Square Garden17,101 | 9–3 |- | 13 || November 27, 1990 || Indiana | W 107–97 | | | | Bradley Center13,492 | 10–3 |- | 14 || November 28, 1990 || Charlotte | L 111–118 | | | | Charlotte Coliseum23,901 | 10–4 |- | 15 || November 30, 1990 || New York | W 103–97 | | | | Bradley Center15,294 | 11–4 Milwaukee Bucks December #59A04F #255325 0 0 0 0 |- | 16 || December 2, 1990 || @ Indiana | L 103–107 | | | | Market Square Arena8,717 | 11–5 |- | 17 || December 4, 1990 || @ Philadelphia | L 108–109 | | | | Spectrum10,795 | 11–6 |- | 18 || December 5, 1990 || Cleveland | W 113–109 | | | | Bradley Center13,941 | 12–6 |- | 19 || December 7, 1990 || @ Atlanta | W 104–103 | | | | Omni Coliseum9,586 | 13–6 Milwaukee Bucks January #59A04F #255325 0 0 0 0 Milwaukee Bucks February #59A04F #255325 0 0 0 0 Milwaukee Bucks March #59A04F #255325 0 0 0 0 Milwaukee Bucks April #59A04F #255325 0 0 0 0 MIL 1991 Playoffs Milwaukee Bucks 1991 yes #255325 #FFFFFF Milwaukee Bucks First Round yes yes no #59A04F #255325 0 1 0 2 |- | 1 | April 25 | Philadelphia | L 90–99 | Frank Brickowski (22) | Frank Brickowski (9) | Jay Humphries (9) | Bradley Center13,587 | 0–1 |- | 2 | April 27 | Philadelphia | L 112–116 (OT) | Alvin Robertson (31) | Frank Brickowski (12) | Jay Humphries (8) | Bradley Center15,623 | 0–2 |- | 3 | April 30 | @ Philadelphia | L 100–121 | Alvin Robertson (26) | Robertson, Brickowski (5) | Jay Humphries (8) | Spectrum16,239 | 0–3 |- MIL 1991 yes Player statistics Season Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG Ricky Pierce 46 0 28.8 49.9 39.8 90.7 2.5 2.1 0.8 0.222.5 Dale Ellis 21 0 29.7 48.6 44.1 70.7 3.9 1.5 0.8 0.219.3 Jay Humphries 80 80 34.1 50.2 37.3 79.9 2.8 6.7 1.6 0.115.2 Alvin Robertson 81 81 32.1 48.5 36.5 75.7 5.7 5.5 3.0 0.213.6 Frank Brickowski 75 73 25.5 52.7 0.0 79.8 5.7 1.7 1.1 0.612.6 Fred Roberts 82 82 25.8 53.3 16.0 81.3 3.4 1.6 0.8 0.410.8 Danny Schayes 82 38 27.2 49.9 0.0 83.5 6.5 1.2 0.7 0.710.6 Jack Sikma 77 44 25.2 42.7 34.1 84.3 5.7 1.9 0.8 0.810.4 Jeff Grayer 82 7 17.3 43.3 0.0 68.7 3.0 1.5 0.6 0.16.4 Adrian Dantley 10 0 12.6 38.0 33.3 69.2 1.3 0.9 0.5 0.05.7 Brad Lohaus 81 3 15.0 43.1 27.7 68.5 2.7 0.9 0.6 0.95.3 Steve Henson 68 0 10.1 41.8 33.3 90.5 0.8 1.9 0.5 0.03.1 Lester Conner 39 2 13.3 39.6 0.0 75.0 1.4 2.7 1.2 0.02.9 Greg Anderson 26 0 9.5 37.0 0.0 57.1 2.9 0.1 0.3 0.32.7 Everette Stephens 3 0 2.0 66.7 0.0 100.0 0.0 0.7 0.0 0.02.0 Frank Kornet 32 0 4.9 37.1 27.8 53.8 0.8 0.3 0.2 0.01.8 Playoffs Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG Alvin Robertson 3 3 39.3 59.2 33.3 76.9 6.0 5.0 2.7 0.023.7 Frank Brickowski 3 3 36.7 53.3 0.0 50.0 8.7 1.0 0.3 0.718.3 Jay Humphries 3 3 41.0 53.1 40.0 90.0 2.0 8.3 0.7 0.015.0 Fred Roberts 3 3 34.3 45.7 0.0 100.0 5.0 2.3 0.7 0.311.3 Danny Schayes 3 3 23.7 39.1 0.0 90.9 4.0 1.0 1.0 0.39.3 Steve Henson 3 0 13.3 50.0 66.7 75.0 1.0 1.0 0.3 0.05.7 Jeff Grayer 3 0 12.3 38.5 0.0 83.3 2.0 2.0 0.3 0.05.0 Jack Sikma 3 0 17.0 40.0 50.0 50.0 4.0 2.0 1.7 0.34.7 Lohaus, Brad Brad Lohaus 3 0 13.7 31.3 37.5 50.0 3.0 0.3 0.0 0.04.7 Lester Conner 1 0 7.0 100.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 2.0 0.0 0.02.0 Adrian Dantley 3 0 6.3 14.3 0.0 75.0 1.3 0.0 0.0 0.01.7 Larry Krystkowiak 3 0 8.3 16.7 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.7 0.3 0.00.7 Player statistics citation: Awards and records Alvin Robertson, NBA All-Defensive First Team Transactions Trades August 1, 1990 To Milwaukee Bucks---- Frank Brickowski To San Antonio Spurs---- Paul Pressey August 1, 1990 To Milwaukee Bucks---- Danny Schayes To Denver Nuggets---- Terry Mills January 16, 1991 To Milwaukee Bucks---- Lester Conner To New Jersey Nets---- Cadillac Anderson February 15, 1991 To Milwaukee Bucks---- Dale Ellis To Seattle SuperSonics---- Ricky Pierce Free agents Player Signed Former teamAdrian DantleyApril 2, 1991Dallas Mavericks Player Transactions Citation:1990–91 Milwaukee Bucks Transactions Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/1991_transactions.html October 16, 2021 References See also 1990-91 NBA season Category:Milwaukee Bucks seasons Milwaukee Bucks Milwaukee Bucks Milwaukee