The Milwaukee Bucks and the Phoenix Suns are headed to the NBA Finals for what’s sure to be a dynamite matchup that few could have predicted when the season began — or even just last week. The Suns, anchored by Chris Paul, suddenly emerged as a legitimate contender in the regular season. The Bucks overcame an upstart Atlanta Hawks team without star Giannis Antetokounmpo to win the Eastern Conference finals.
Both teams will get to shine on the NBA’s biggest stage, and no matter who wins, it’ll be a first for everyone. For the first time since 1977, no player on either team in the Finals has won a championship before.
While no player has won a championship yet, one Suns player has already won his 2021 championship right before a single Finals game has even happened. In fact, he won his ring the moment the Bucks sealed their win over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.
That player is Torrey Craig. Craig didn’t start his season with the Suns, he actually started with the Bucks. He played 18 games for them through mid-March, when they traded him to the Suns for cash considerations. Craig put up some of his best career numbers in 32 games with the Suns, and now no matter which team wins the championship, Craig is guaranteed a ring.
Of course, depending on who actually wins it all, we don’t know if he’ll want it. If the Bucks beat the Suns, he may not want a ring from the team that traded him for cash. Something like that isn’t unprecedented — Bill DiFilippo at Uproxx brought up Anderson Varejao, who spent 12 seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers before being acquired by the Golden State Warriors in early 2016. The Cavs famously beat the Warriors in the Finals that year, and though they offered him a championship ring, he turned it down.
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