2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks season

NBA professional basketball team season March 2026 August 2023 Milwaukee Bucks 2003 42 40 Central 4 7 George Karl Ernie Grunfeld Herb Kohl Bradley Center WCGV-TVFox Sports Net North(Jim Paschke, Jon McGlocklin) WTMJ First round(lost to Nets 2–4) MIL The 2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks season was the 35th season for the Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association. Milwaukee Bucks Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/ August 8, 2026 For the first time since the 1993–94 season, Glenn Robinson was not on the opening day roster. Season summary Off-season The Bucks received the 13th overall pick in the 2002 NBA draft, and selected power forward Marcus Haislip from the University of Tennessee. Lago Joe Rockets Make Yao Ming First Overall Pick ESPN June 26, 2002 https://www.espn.com/nbadraft/story?id=1399417 October 24, 2026 Passan Jeff Rockets Select Yao No. 1 Overall in Draft The Washington Post June 26, 2002 https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/2002/06/27/rockets-select-yao-no-1-overall-in-draft/514fd892-fe37-4595-aed2-c42c53b509fb/ October 24, 2026 2002 NBA Draft Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/draft/NBA_2002.html October 24, 2026 During the off-season, the team acquired Toni Kukoč from the Atlanta Hawks. Broussard Chris Pro Basketball: Notebook: Hawks Gain a Scorer in Trade for Robinson The New York Times August 3, 2002 https://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/03/sports/pro-basketball-notebook-hawks-gain-a-scorer-in-trade-for-robinson.html January 13, 2022 Smith Sam Eastern Conference Capsules Chicago Tribune October 30, 2002 https://www.chicagotribune.com/cs-2002nba_eastcaps-story.html July 16, 2022 Regular season With the addition of Kukoč, 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. NBA Games Played on February 6, 2003 Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/?month=2&day=6&year=2003 September 13, 2022 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. Popper Steve Pro Basketball: Sonics Deal Payton to Bucks for Allen The New York Times February 21, 2003 https://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/21/sports/pro-basketball-sonics-deal-payton-to-bucks-for-allen.html June 12, 2022 Heisler Mark Losses Will Fit Seattle Like a Glove Los Angeles Times February 21, 2003 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-feb-21-sp-heisler21-story.html June 12, 2022 Nichols Rachel Sonics Trade Payton to Bucks The Washington Post February 21, 2003 https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/2003/02/21/sonics-trade-payton-to-bucks/f5710e4c-06c6-4405-99c8-2b1508e21d8b/ July 2, 2022 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. 2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks Schedule and Results Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/2003_games.html January 13, 2022 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. 2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks Roster and Stats Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/2003.html June 13, 2022 Despite a stellar season before the mid-season trade, Allen was not selected for the 2003 NBA All-Star Game in Atlanta, Georgia; 2003 NBA All-Star Game: West 155, East 145 (2OT) Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/allstar/NBA_2003.html January 29, 2026 Allen averaged 21.3 points per game, and contributed 123 three-point field goals in 47 games with the Bucks. Payton finished in eleventh place in Defensive Player of the Year voting, 2002–03 NBA Awards Voting Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/awards/awards_2003.html January 29, 2026 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; Redd also finished in twelfth place in Most Improved Player voting. 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. 2002–03 NBA Season Summary Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2003.html February 3, 2026 NBA playoffs 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. Robbins Liz Pro Basketball: Nets Finish Off Bucks and Move on to Celtics The New York Times May 2, 2003 https://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/02/sports/pro-basketball-nets-finish-off-bucks-and-move-on-to-celtics.html January 13, 2022 Kerber Fred Nets Get It Done: Boot Bucks Behind Kidd, K-Mart New York Post May 2, 2003 https://nypost.com/2003/05/02/nets-get-it-done-boot-bucks-behind-kidd-k-mart/ June 11, 2022 2003 NBA Eastern Conference First Round: Bucks vs. Nets Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2003-nba-eastern-conference-first-round-bucks-vs-nets.html January 29, 2026 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. Associated Press Spurs Defeat Nets to Win N.B.A. Title The New York Times June 15, 2003 https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/15/sports/basketball/spurs-defeat-nets-to-win-nba-title.html July 15, 2022 Heisler Mark Spurs Reduce the 'Risk Los Angeles Times June 16, 2003 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jun-16-sp-nbafinals16-story.html July 15, 2022 2003 NBA Finals: Nets vs. Spurs Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/2003-nba-finals-nets-vs-spurs.html January 29, 2026 Aftermath Following the season, Payton signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers, Popper Steve Pro Basketball: Malone Agrees to Play for Lakers, Taking a $17.7 Million Cut in Pay The New York Times July 11, 2003 https://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/11/sports/pro-basketball-malone-agrees-to-play-for-lakers-taking-a-17.7-million-cut-in-pay.html?mcubz=0 January 14, 2022 Brown Tim It's Glove in Hand Los Angeles Times July 9, 2003 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jul-09-sp-lakers9-story.html June 12, 2022 Neiman David Payton, Lakers Agree on Contract The Washington Post July 9, 2003 https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/2003/07/09/payton-lakers-agree-on-contract/674344de-185f-4fe0-8d4d-723416a4c92e/ July 15, 2022 while Cassell and Johnson were both traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves on draft day, Broussard Chris Pro Basketball: In Fallout from Draft, Bucks Trade Cassell The New York Times June 28, 2003 https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/28/sports/pro-basketball-in-fallout-from-draft-bucks-trade-cassell.html June 11, 2022 Bucks Send Cassell to Minnesota United Press International June 27, 2003 https://www.upi.com/Sports_News/2003/06/27/Bucks-send-Cassell-to-Minnesota/23201056745933/ October 27, 2022 head coach George Karl was fired, Associated Press Pro Basketball: Karl Is Gone as Bucks Coach The New York Times July 21, 2003 https://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/21/sports/pro-basketball-karl-is-gone-as-bucks-coach.html October 27, 2022 Karl Is Out as Coach of Bucks Los Angeles Times July 21, 2003 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jul-21-sp-newswire21-story.html November 28, 2022 and Caffey and Anthony Mason both retired. Draft picks 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 Milwaukee Bucks 2002–03 #4B0082 #FFFFFF #255235 #FFFFFF 35 Jason Caffey F 6 8 256 1973–06–12 Alabama 10 Sam Cassell G 6 3 185 1969–11–18 Florida State 50 Dan Gadzuric C 6 11 245 1978–02–02 UCLA 12 Marcus Haislip F/C 6 10 230 1980–12–22 Tennessee 40 Ervin Johnson C 6 11 245 1967–12–21 New Orleans 7 Toni Kukoč F 6 10 192 1968–09–18 Croatia 17 Anthony Mason basketball F 6 7 250 1966–12–14 Tennessee State 24 Desmond Mason G/F 6 5 222 1977–10–11 Oklahoma State 20 Gary Payton G 6 4 180 1968–07–23 Oregon State 6 Joel Przybilla C 7 1 245 1979–10–10 Minnesota 22 Michael Redd G/F 6 6 215 1979–08–24 Ohio State 31 Jamal Sampson F/C 6 11 257 1983–05–13 California 5 Tim Thomas basketball F 6 10 240 1977–02–26 Villanova George Karl Ron Adams Mike McNeive Sam Mitchell Don Newman https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/2003.html Regular season Season standings MIL MIL Game log Milwaukee Bucks 2003 #255325 #FFFFFF Total: 42–40 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0) Milwaukee Bucks October yes #609 white 0 0 0 1 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 1 || October 30, 2002 || @ Philadelphia | L 93–95 | | | | First Union Center19,569 | 0–1 Milwaukee Bucks November #609 white 4 2 2 4 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 2 || November 2, 2002 || Orlando | L 90–100 |Michael Redd (17) |Toni Kukoc (12) |Kevin Ollie (5) | Bradley Center16,713 | 0–2 |-style="background:#ccffcc;" | 3 || November 4, 2002 || @ New York | W 97–88 | |Dan Gadzuric (10) | | Madison Square Garden18,100 | 1–2 |-style="background:#ccffcc;" | 4 || November 6, 2002 || New Jersey | W 99–93 | | | | Bradley Center14,539 | 2–2 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 5 || November 7, 2002 || @ Minnesota | L 110–114 | | | | Target Center14,776 | 2–3 |-style="background:#ccffcc;" | 6 || November 9, 2002 || Philadelphia | W 110–105 | | | | Bradley Center16,782 | 3–3 |-style="background:#ccffcc;" | 7 || November 13, 2002 || Chicago | W 108–101 | | | | Bradley Center14,036 | 4–3 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 8 || November 15, 2002 || @ Indiana | L 100–103 | | | | Conseco Fieldhouse16,010 | 4–4 |-style="background:#ccffcc;" | 9 || November 16, 2002 || Boston | W 104–85 | | | | Bradley Center18,717 | 5–4 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 10 || November 19, 2002 || Miami | L 93–97 | | | | Bradley Center13,632 | 5–5 |-style="background:#ccffcc;" | 11 || November 22, 2002 || @ Golden State | W 95–91 | | | | The Arena in Oakland12,170 | 6–5 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 12 || November 24, 2002 || @ L. A. Lakers | L 99–111 | | | | STAPLES Center18,997 | 6–6 |-style="background:#fcc;" | 13 || November 25, 2002 || @ Phoenix | L 81–86 | | | | America West Arena12,986 | 6–7 Milwaukee Bucks December #609 white 0 0 0 0 Milwaukee Bucks January #609 white 0 0 0 0 Milwaukee Bucks February #609 white 0 0 0 0 Milwaukee Bucks March #609 white 0 0 0 0 Milwaukee Bucks April #609 white 0 0 0 0 MIL 2003 Playoffs Milwaukee Bucks 2003 yes #255325 #FFFFFF Milwaukee Bucks First Round yes yes no #609 white 1 2 1 2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 1 | April 19 | @ New Jersey | L 96–109 | Tim Thomas (25) | Desmond Mason (8) | Gary Payton (10) | Continental Airlines Arena16,102 | 0–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | April 22 | @ New Jersey | W 88–85 | Gary Payton (22) | Anthony Mason (8) | Gary Payton (7) | Continental Airlines Arena17,633 | 1–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 3 | April 24 | New Jersey | L 101–103 | Sam Cassell (24) | Tim Thomas (11) | Gary Payton (8) | Bradley Center17,539 | 1–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 4 | April 26 | New Jersey | W 119–114 (OT) | Toni Kukoč (23) | Desmond Mason (8) | Gary Payton (14) | Bradley Center18,391 | 2–2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 5 | April 29 | @ New Jersey | L 82–89 | Toni Kukoč (18) | Desmond Mason (12) | Gary Payton (5) | Continental Airlines Arena16,601 | 2–3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 6 | May 1 | New Jersey | L 101–113 | Gary Payton (24) | Tim Thomas (6) | Gary Payton (8) | Bradley Center18,717 | 2–4 |- MIL 2003 yes Player statistics Season Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG Allen, Ray 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 Kukoc, Toni Toni Kukoč 63 0 27.0 43.2 36.1 70.6 4.2 3.7 1.3 0.5 11.6 Mason, Anthony 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 Kukoc, Toni 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: Awards and records George Karl, Coach of the Month in January Transactions Overview Players Added Via draft Dan Gadzuric Marcus Haislip Ronald Murray Jamal Sampson Via trade Toni Kukoč Desmond Mason Gary Payton Via free agency Kevin OlliePlayers Lost Via trade Ray Allen Ronald Murray Kevin Ollie Glenn Robinson Via free agency Rafer Alston Greg Anthony Greg Foster Darvin Ham Mark Pope Trades August 2, 2002 To Milwaukee Bucks---- Toni Kukoč Leon Smith 2003 1st round pick (T. J. Ford) To Atlanta Hawks---- Glenn Robinson February 20, 2003 To Milwaukee Bucks---- Desmond Mason Gary Payton To Seattle SuperSonics---- Ray Allen Ronald Murray Kevin Ollie 2003 1st round pick (Luke Ridnour) Free agents Player Signed Former teamKevin OllieSeptember 6, 2002Indiana PacersCedric HendersonSeptember 25, 2002Golden State Warriors Player Transactions Citation:2002–03 Milwaukee Bucks Transactions Basketball-Reference https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIL/2003_transactions.html January 13, 2022 References See also 2002–03 NBA season Category:Milwaukee Bucks seasons Milwaukee Bucks Milwaukee Bucks Milwaukee