Giannis Antetokounmpo discussed pride and competitiveness more than a week ago when his team lost to the Brooklyn Nets for a third time. It’s two months in to the season and looks like the Milwaukee Bucks are going back to their old habits.
Jan 2, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) and Brooklyn Nets guard Keon Johnson (45) battle for a rebound in the second half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images
The Bucks fell hard against the New York Knicks, losing by 34 points, 106-140. Antetokounmpo scored 24 points while Damian Lillard had 22 although it is easy to say those points were not impactful enough in a game that they trailed for most of the night.
The Greek Freak talked about how they failed to create spaces for themselves in the game, leading to poor 3-point shooting.
They were 10/34 for beyond the arc or 29.4 percent overall.
Giannis said they were not aggressive enough in finding their space, reason why they were not able to take more quality shots from that line.
Jan 10, 2025; Orlando, Florida, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard (0) reacts to a call to referee CJ Washington (12) against the Orlando Magic in the second quarter at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Lillard, Khris Middleton, and AJ Green all had two made field goals from three. Four individuals had one each.
They did not compete for that space as suggested by Antetokounmpo. An old song they have been hearing since October.
Giannis Antetokounmpo comments on lack of competitiveness
The Bucks may be back competing for a home court advantage but one glaring stat about their record is their 0-8 standing against the top three teams in the East – Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, and the Knicks.
That was brought up by a reporter post game along with his preaching that they need to be more competitive.
Jan 4, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) and guard AJ Green (20) reacts in the fourth quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
Antetokounmpo has no problem bring that up over and over again as he believes they have already proven before that they can get the job done.
As I said we are way better team than the November team. We have proven it, played better basketball for longer stretches. But at the end of the day, when you play the top three teams, you gotta do a better job. We gotta take it. They’re not gonna give it to us.
