Milwaukee Bucks Logo PNG
Founded in 1968, the Milwaukee basketball team paid close attention to the choice of its mascot. The Milwaukee Bucks logo reflects nobility, courage, and natural athleticism. The brutality of the latest version, its severity, and its threats encapsulated the spirit of the sports club.
Milwaukee Bucks: Brand overview
| Founded: | 1968 |
| Founder: | Wes Edens, Marc Lasry, Jamie Dinan, Mike Fascitelli |
| Headquarters: | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Website: | nba.com |
In 1968, the NBA approved the creation of a professional basketball team in Wisconsin. Talented basketball enthusiasts began suggesting names for the future team. Among them were various animals, including beavers, ponies, hornets, and even skunks. Eventually, the management decided to settle on representatives of the animal kingdom of higher order, and soon, the team received its official name, Milwaukee Bucks. Mr. Treblicox, a Wisconsin resident who first suggested this name, made club history and received a new car as a gift.
It’s worth noting that the white-tailed deer, abundantly present in North America, is one of the official symbols of the state of Wisconsin. The fact is that deer hunting in Wisconsin is not just a favorite hobby but also a vital necessity. Ever since American pioneers exterminated all the wolves there, the number of deer living in the forests has increased dramatically, and now people have to cull them.
The symbol of the Milwaukee Bucks is quite controversial. On the one hand, every fan would like their favorite players to demonstrate “deer-like” nobility and natural athleticism. On the other hand, these antlered creatures are harmless, even cowardly, preferring to live in solitude, thus completely lacking team spirit.
American slang offers a much more suitable interpretation of the term buck. It’s a young, self-assured man.
Meaning and History
The second professional basketball team of Milwaukee was named the Milwaukee Bucks in May 1968. At the same time, the logo based on this name was approved. Forty-five people, including R. D. Trebilcox from Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, suggested this name. He best justified his choice, for which he was awarded a car. Since then, the emblem has always featured a depiction of a deer. The “Milwaukee Bucks” have had four original emblems.
What is Milwaukee Bucks?
The Milwaukee Bucks is the only team in the National Basketball Association that has won championships in both the Western and Eastern conferences. The team debuted in 1968 and has never changed its name since.
1968 – 1993
The debut emblem is done in a cartoonish style. It features a friendly, adorable eight-point buck in a green sweater with a white “B” on its chest. It sits atop a two-tiered inscription consisting of the team’s name. Additionally, the animal smiles warmly, closes its eyes, and holds a spinning basketball on one hoof.
This embodies the club’s confidence that athletes can play excellently at a professional level – even with their eyes closed. The creator of this version was Matt Kastelic, an advertising artist appointed by team General Manager John Erickson.
1994 – 2006
In May 1993, the franchise management began implementing a new logo. It was a fundamentally different symbolism: serious and aggressive in style. The image depicted a male white-tailed deer looking straight ahead. It peers from behind a two-line inscription, Milwaukee Bucks, where the first word is small and the second large, with highlighted letters B and S. Against the backdrop of an inverted triangle, only the head and upper part of the strong torso are visible. As noted by Creative Director Tom O’Grady, the updated symbolism signifies a united team confidently looking to the future and ready to take on any challenge. This version was created by the design group NBA Properties Inc.
2007 – 2014
Before the 2006/07 season opened, the club introduced a new logo and changed the color scheme. Iconic green and silver remained, and red was used instead of purple. NBA Vice President Christopher Arena said that the saturated red color matches the team’s spirit, conveying the spirit of victory and reflecting warmth and energy. The rest of the design is identical to the previous version, except for the background rectangle for the inscription – it received cropped edges.
2015 – today
In 2015, the new owners of the Bucks club introduced a new version of the emblem. The new logo is not a restyling of the past one, but the main concept remains the same – the deer depicts the “Bucks” emblem head-on. In this version, the emblem looks artistic and conceptual. The deer’s gaze became more confident, the eyes – stern, the antlers – larger. Additionally, the basketball theme is encrypted three times in the drawing. Thus, the shape of the round ball is depicted in the space outlined by the inner small and large outer antlers, and the circle of the basket is reflected in the circular border. The animal’s chest is depicted as the capital letter “M” – a tribute to the city of Milwaukee.
According to NBA rules, the full name of the team must be fully written on the main emblem. Therefore, the designers decided to place the inscription Milwaukee Bucks at the very bottom. The entire composition is enclosed in a cream-colored circle. The fact is that cream color is used for the first time in the color scheme of an NBA team and reflects the main nickname, Cream City. Thus, Milwaukee was called because many settlers’ houses were built from brick made from local cream-colored clay.
Milwaukee Bucks: Interesting Facts
The Milwaukee Bucks basketball team started in 1968 and quickly became one of the best teams in the league.
- Quick to Win: They won their first championship in 1971, just three years after they started. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson, two amazing players, helped a lot.
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: He joined the Bucks in 1969 and made a big difference immediately, helping them win in 1971 and getting three MVP awards while he was with them.
- Giannis Antetokounmpo: Picked 15th in 2013, Giannis, or “The Greek Freak,” has become a star player. He led the Bucks to win another championship in 2021, 50 years after their first.
- The Name and Mascot: “Bucks” was picked by fans and fits Wisconsin’s wildlife theme. Their mascot, Bango, is fun, and fans love him.
- Biggest Win: The Bucks set a record for the biggest win ever by beating the New Orleans Jazz 58 points in 1978.
- Arenas: They’ve played in different places but moved to the Fiserv Forum in 2018, a modern arena in downtown Milwaukee.
- Loyal Players: Some players, like Jon McGlocklin and Junior Bridgeman, stayed close to the Bucks even after they stopped playing, helping the community.
- Fans Everywhere: Thanks to Giannis, the Bucks have fans worldwide, especially in Greece, his home country.
- Standing Up for What’s Right: In 2020, the Bucks didn’t play a game to protest against unfair treatment of people based on race, leading to a league-wide effort to tackle social issues.
- Honoring Players: The Bucks have retired the numbers of their best players, such as Oscar Robertson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Giannis’s number will probably be retired, too.
- Coaching Contributions: Some former Bucks players, like Larry Costello and Don Nelson, have become great coaches or team leaders.
- Fear the Deer: This is what fans say to show their support. It means the Bucks are strong and ready to win.
The Milwaukee Bucks have done a lot on and off the basketball court, making them a team people care about.
Font and Colors
The mascot and main symbol of the team is the white-tailed deer. It was chosen for its agility, grace, instantaneous reaction, impeccable running speed, and ability to jump high. In the current logo, it looks like a dominant and commanding male; nothing can prevent it from achieving its goal. This is evidenced by the stern look and confidence conveyed by the monolithic figure.
Initially, the inscription “MILWAUKEE BUCKS” was written in black with a slight tilt to the right. Then, the word size became disproportionate: the designers made the first part of the name small and the second – large. In the modern version, the font is hard, engraved, high-precision, elongated, and blocky.
The green color remained as a reminder of the basketball club’s past achievements. Purple was just fashionable, so it was replaced with red – a symbol of energy. Silver first emphasized the shades of purple, then became one of the main ones.
Milwaukee Bucks color codes
| Good Land Green | Hex color: | #00471b |
|---|---|---|
| RGB: | 0 71 27 | |
| CMYK: | 80 0 90 75 | |
| Pantone: | PMS 350 C |
| Cream City Cream | Hex color: | #eee1c6 |
|---|---|---|
| RGB: | 240 235 210 | |
| CMYK: | 6 9 23 0 | |
| Pantone: | PMS 350 C |
| Great Lakes Blue | Hex color: | #0077c0 |
|---|---|---|
| RGB: | 0 125 197 | |
| CMYK: | 100 45 0 0 | |
| Pantone: | PMS 468 C |
| Black | Hex color: | #000000 |
|---|---|---|
| RGB: | 6 25 34 | |
| CMYK: | 20 20 20 100 | |
| Pantone: | PMS 2935 C |
FAQ
Did the “Milwaukee Bucks” change their logo?
Yes, the Milwaukee Bucks had four logos, and with each redesign, they became increasingly brutal. The current version, adopted in 2015, looks very severe and intimidating, unlike the first emblem with a cartoonish deer. But it uses negative space: the lower half of the antlers forms the silhouette of a basketball.
Who designed the Milwaukee Bucks logo?
As far as we know, the 1994-2006 logo was created by the advertising department of NBA Properties Inc., headed by Tom O’Grady. The modern version was likely developed by the Milwaukee Bucks designers.
What animal is depicted on the “Bucks” logo?
The Milwaukee Bucks logo features the head of a white-tailed deer, which is also the team’s mascot. It’s one of the most common animals in North America.
How many points are on the Milwaukee Bucks logo?
The deer on the Milwaukee Bucks logo has twelve antlers, four more than the previous version. Designers added new tines to show the growing danger and strength of the animal.