2001–02 Milwaukee Bucks season

The 2001–02 Milwaukee Bucks season was the 34th season for the Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association. During the off-season, the Bucks signed free agent Anthony Mason to shore up their front line. After advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals last year, the Bucks got off to a solid start by winning nine of their first ten games of the regular season, but then lost five straight afterwards. The team posted an 8-game winning streak in January, which led them to a division-leading record of 26–13 as of January 21, 2002, and held a 28–18 record at the All-Star break. At mid-season, the team signed free agent Greg Anthony, who was previously released by the Chicago Bulls.

However, with a 35–25 record as of March 6, the Bucks struggled and lost 16 of their final 22 games of the season, and missed the NBA playoffs by finishing in fifth place in the Central Division with a disappointing 41–41 record, and also finishing just one game behind the 8th–seeded Indiana Pacers. On the final day of the regular season on April 17, 2002, the Bucks suffered an embarrassing road loss to the Detroit Pistons, 123–89 at The Palace of Auburn Hills. This was one of the biggest late-season collapses for a team that was contending for a Division title in March.

Ray Allen averaged 21.8 points and 1.3 steals per game, and led the league with 229 three-point field goals, while Glenn Robinson averaged 20.7 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, and Sam Cassell provided the team with 19.7 points and 6.7 assists per game. In addition, Mason contributed 9.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game, while off the bench, sixth man Tim Thomas averaged 11.7 points per game, and second-year guard Michael Redd showed improvement averaging 11.4 points per game. Meanwhile, Darvin Ham averaged 4.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, second-year center Joel Pryzbilla provided with 2.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, and Ervin Johnson contributed 2.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game.

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Allen was selected for the 2002 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Eastern Conference All-Star team. In addition, Allen participated in the NBA Three-Point Shootout for the third consecutive year. The Bucks finished twelfth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 745,305 at the Bradley Center during the regular season.

Following the season, Robinson was traded to the Atlanta Hawks after eight seasons with the Bucks, while Ham signed as a free agent with the Hawks, and Anthony retired. For the season, the Bucks slightly changed their uniforms by adding side panels to their jerseys, while making the numbers on the road jerseys silver; these uniforms would remain in use until 2006.