The Milwaukee Bucks’ season is going bad and it became even worse when they lost to the worst team in the league despite having Giannis Antetokounmpo play more than 31 minutes. Doc Rivers said he was frustrated all night long over the way they played.
The Greek Freak is playing his third game after missing four due to a groin injury. He played less than 30 minutes in the games against the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets where they went 1-1.
Although the two-time MVP still scored 28 points, he only had 7 rebounds, and 4 assists. He also got 5 turnovers.
Rivers said Antetokounmpo has been receiving all kinds of defense in the league. However, he probably feels bad about his TOs.
“Giannis has seen everything, literally everything, so I think he handles it pretty well,” Rivers said.”The five turnovers is probably what he would like back. But other than that he played pretty well.”
Wizards’ young big men are getting the credit. Kyshawn George, Marvin Bagley III, and Tristan Vukcevic took turns and in slowing down the the Bucks star.
They prevented him from slashing and blocked the passing lane with their quickness to take away Antetokounmpo’s playmaking.
It did not help, too, that Kevin Porter Jr. had to leave the game during crunch time due to back injury and Khris Middleton hitting poetic shots to slay his former team.
💸 https://t.co/nUAy3JiPvc pic.twitter.com/Vhr8aMLQiV
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) December 2, 2025
Doc Rivers’ high emotions after the loss
The game was close in all four quarters. It was for anybody’s taking until the final buzzer. However, that’s not how it should be as the Bucks were hugely favored heading into the game.
Rivers said they did not have the fire power to compete.
“I didn’t think we played right most of the night, personally,” he told reporters after the game.
“They had 18 more shots than us. You know how hard it is to win a game when you spot a team; I always tell people just imagine saying, ‘You get the first 18 shots and then we’ll start the game.’ God.”
He also looked back at the drop off of their performance after a dominant win versus the Nets.
“We played so well the other night [vs. Brooklyn on Nov. 29], rebounded well, and then tonight … I felt frustrated the entire night. I really did. I just didn’t think we played with the right something. And we played like we thought we were gonna win the game. That’s how I felt.”
Things will be tougher for the Bucks in the days to come as next on their slate are East’s best Detroit Pistons two times, sandwiching the game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
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