I remember the last time the Bucks picked up an apparently washed 31-year-old center. He's half my name.
Washington Post, April 20, 1980:
Before they acquired Bob Lanier during the all-star break, the Milwaukee Bucks were considered a team of the future.With such young exciting players as Marques Johnson, Junior Bridgeman, Dave Meyers, Brian Winters and Sidney Moncrief, it seemed only a matter of time before they challenged Seattle, Los Angeles and Phoenix for supremacy in NBA's Western Conference.
The success came sooner than expected when the deal was made with Detroit for the 6-foot-11, 260-pound Lanier. The Bucks have pushed the defending NBA champion Sonics to seven games in their Western semifinal playoffs, which will end Sunday in Seattle.
...
Regardless of the outcome, the Bucks have proven their legitimacy and Lanier, despite all his disappointments with the Pistons, has shown he is still a dominating force in the NBA.
"I guess I underestimated the value of having an old veteran on the team," said Buck Coach Don Nelson. "I didn't realize that until Bob got here."
Lanier has made the Bucks stable and given them a leader, the one thing they had lacked.
Lanier was traded for Kent Benson, who was not intimidating, or even effective for that matter, at either end of the floor.
"I felt I could help this squad right away," Lanier said. "You're leery at first in any new situation. I was leery because the thing you worry about is not to be a disruptive factor. A lot of times you can come to a squad and not have a lot of talent. But if your kind of talent doesn't jell with theirs, or if you come there trying be what you were someplace else -- like a top scorer, then that can have a very disruptive effect. So what I try to do is just blend in as best as possible and use the skills that I have to make Milwaukee a better team."
"The Bucks in six always. That's for the culture." -- B. Jennings