Giannis Antetokounmpo isn’t just the heart and soul of the Milwaukee Bucks—he’s the engine behind their momentum moments too. Threes, fouls, injury reports, misses. Improbable runners.
Game-winners. Volume 5 has them all. Relive the moments that have defined the Bucks’ recent play and given their season new hope.
@ Pacers
It’s the Myles Turner Grudge Match, Part Two, and Gainbridge Fieldhouse throws boos at the mercenary every time he touches the ball. The cacophony impacts Turner in two ways: (1) He’s charged, firing away more aggressively than he has been all season, swatting shots like he hasn’t in a month. (2) He just can’t get the ball to consistently drop. Neither can the Bucks’ sniper, AJ Green. He’s a career 43% three point shooter—49% on the season prior to going down with injury—but since he’s returned he’s just 2/14, a paltry 14%, including 0/4 on the night. It doesn’t really matter, though—the Bucks are up 86-68 to start the fourth and then by 20 when Ryan Rollins makes a four-footer. But when turnovers by Kyle Kuzma and Turner lead to a T.J. McConnell layup and Johnny Furphy dunk, Doc Rivers senses the ominous, calls a timeout to reset.
Less than two minutes later, after another Kuzma turnover and
two more Pacers finishes at the rim, it’s no longer just Rivers who hears the sirens—we’ve
all seen this movie before. Timeout, Bucks. And when Turner resorts to and then clanks a turnaround fadeaway while guarded by Furphy, Bucks fans wonder if he’s actually a plant and this—his signing, the vitriol, the poor play—is all part of a greater, masterminded subterfuge to destroy the Bucks from within. Wonder turns to dread as McConnell goes coast-to-coast, blows by Turner for
another layup—cutting it to just 12—and the momentum becomes tangible, Marques Johnson’s “Man, oh man,” saying more than the three words denote. Two possessions later, Bennedict Mathurin misses a gettable layup and Kevin Porter Jr. grabs the rebound. He pushes in transition, then slows just enough to let Mathurin scurry back to the paint. The pause creates an opening and Porter seizes it, finds Green waiting alone on the wing. Green’s magazine might be empty—heck, he might as well have been shooting blanks—but there’s one left in the chamber. Feet set, shoulders squared, he rises up without hesitation and does what a sniper does, sticks it right in the Pacers’ chest. They aren’t dead yet, these Pacers can’t help themselves—not against the Bucks—but it’s a crushing hit; momentum thwarted. And with it the time-honoured adage rings true: it may not be your night, but it can be your moment.
Win probability after McConnell blows by Turner for the layup: 96.2%
Win probability after Green buries the three: 99.2%
@ Grizzlies
Sometimes it’s not the players who shift a game’s momentum. The Bucks are in Memphis and DMX blares through the PA system as if it’s the 90s. The Bucks pull away at the end of the first but the Grizzlies just
dominate the second—win it by 20—and go up by as much as 15 during the third. To open the fourth, though, the Bucks get a stop, and when Rollins makes a 21-foot step back jumper it’s just a seven point game. They play excellent D on the next possession too, forcing Jaren Jackson Jr. into a contested three to beat the shot clock. It misses and Rollins grabs the board, only for Gary Harris to be called for a soft off-ball foul. The Bucks stick with it, though, a deflection running more clock, and when Ja Morant gets the ball back he’s got fewer than four seconds to make a play. Rollins pokes the ball loose—slicing
that time in half—and Ja has no other option than to throw a heave at the rim. Rollins plays it perfectly: he’s up in Ja’s grill, leaning back with his hands
behind his back, and Ja does all he can, chucks the heave and flails his arms, legs, head—like a bug that’s been caught in web and knows it’s done.
The ball thuds off glass and it’s Bucks ball, a chance to make it a two possession game. But suddenly it’s not because there’s a hometown superstar whistle: three free throws for Morant, a fifth foul on Rollins, and, for some inexplicable reason, Doc doesn’t challenge the call. Despite the game being right there to take—despite
Rollins the one primed to do the taking. Instead, Doc subs him out and it’s the beginning of the end. On the next possession, Porter
and Jericho Sims are blocked at the rim. Then Cedric Cowerd makes a transition three pointer to add salt to the wounds. Doc tries to redeem himself, calling for a timeout, but it’s too late. Another turnover after the break leads to a Santi Aldama layup and it’s a 14 point margin. The game ends on a 33-19 Grizzlies run following the call on Rollins and at least one Bucks fan wakes up the next morning hoping Doc’s dreams were as plagued by that non-challenge as his were.
Win probability prior to Rollins being called for a foul on Morant’s three: 15.6%
Win probability after Aldama’s layup: 2.4%
@ Bulls
Somewhere in the NBA’s offices, a finger clicks a mouse and the 7:00 p.m. (ET) NBA injury report goes live. On it, Giannis’ status is changed from “Questionable” to “Available” and, with it, order is finally restored.
Win probability prior to the 7:00 p.m. injury report: 31.4% (probably)
Win probability after the 7:00 p.m. injury report: 50.4%
And, just in case you needed the reminder, here’s Giannis dunking
four times in a row on the Bulls.
@ Hornets
The hive is buzzing, Hornets zooming in and around, connecting on lobs and threes, swiping
every rebound. They release their pheromones, mobilising the entire nest in an attempt to thwart the threat, and it nearly works, too, as they build an 11 point lead. But the Bucks withstand the attack and seize control; take a six point lead into the fourth. It’s not over, though, not by a long shot. LaMelo Ball stings twice with back-to-back threes and the scores are tied, the hive a buzz saw. Bobby Portis feels the venom, feels the barb tear through flesh as it exits too. But it ain’t the only thing that’s sharp. And so he lowers his head, shows his antlers. Charges forward. It’s a three-pronged attack.
It starts with a decoy, BP feigning a hand-off to a curling Gary Harris from the corner, then
actually handing it off to Gary Trent Jr. imitating the action. Portis pops to the corner following the give and catches it right back with space. He rises—lifting his antlers—and punches it home. 23 seconds later, after he grabs the defensive ‘bound and pushes it in transition, he gets it back from Porter on the right wing and rises again from three. Same action, same result—the puncture wounds starting to take their toll. But he’s not done—a Moussa Diabate put-back gives the Hornets a pulse. And so he backs it up, loiters at the top of the three point line, and rakes his hoof against the ground in preparation for the final assault. You’d think Diabate would notice, but he’s mesmerised by the alpha, and when he finally reacts to Giannis’ kick-out to Portis it’s too late—Bobby is shoving that antler right back in. Once, twice, thrice for good measure. Three more on the board—nine points in just 66 seconds. By the time he’s done, the hive is all but destroyed, fragments falling to the ground. Turning to dust.
Win probability after Ball ties it: 52.5%
Win probability after Portis’ third consecutive three: 81.8%
vs. Wizards
With 1:15 to go in the fourth quarter, Turner sinks a free throw to give the Bucks a 111-110 lead against the Washington Wizards. It’s part of a 14-3 Bucks run in a bid to get the dub, which would mean three in a row to end the calendar year and set the Bucks up for a run in 2026. On defence, Turner backs up his free throw with a come-from-behind block at the rim on Alex Sarr that is just
silly—both players ending up on the hardwood—and Fiserv becomes raucous, fans literally out of their seats. Somehow, it gets even better as Turner recovers fast enough to crash the offensive glass and corral a Giannis miss, then whip it out to Rollins who swings it to a wide-open Green in the corner.
The sequence should be the defining moment of the game—it
should be Turner’s defining moment of his young Bucks tenure. But, as is the case lately, Green can’t connect on the triple and the collective groan feels like the one that comes after a police officer knocks at a family door, says the words everyone dreads. Green sticks with it, though, musters a huge defensive stop on the other end, and when Giannis sinks two free throws to put the Bucks up three the world feels right. Crack the champagne, blow the party horn, Happy New Year! But CJ McCollum has other ideas, crashing the Bucks’ party with two buckets in the final thirty seconds—including the game winner—after the Wiz hadn’t made a single one in the prior
five minutes. It’s deeper than a mere gut punch—a perpetual bruise to the soul—and an all too fitting end to a Bucks year full of pain and turmoil.
Win probability after Turner’s block: 63.3%
Win probability after Green’s miss: 57.8%
vs. Hornets
It’s the first day back at school and the kids squabble on the blacktop. Lunch break is nearly over.
“It’s
my moment!” Ryan declares, nailing a one-dribble 25-foot three pointer that gives his team a one-point lead.
“No, it’s mine!” retorts Miles, finishing a double-pump contested layup off a right baseline drive.
“Mine!” snaps Kyle, after he drains a three of his own, pulling his best Melo “Three to the Dome” celebration as he makes his way back to defence.
Three lead changes in 35 seconds. The bell is drawing near. Has to be.
Just two seconds later, Miles converts an alley-oop layup
on Kyle that sends him to the bench writhing in pain. He flexes, shouts for all to hear. “What’d I tell you?
I run this.”
The crowd quietens, stunned at what they’ve seen. Some pick up their backpacks. Others start loping back to class. From the sidelines, Kyle’s eyes fall to his feet and he bites his bottom lip. But the bell hasn’t rung. Not yet.
Eventually, the biggest kid in the playground walks across. “I think you’ll find it’s mine,” he says. Then he flushes home the game-winning oop.
Win probability after Miles’ and-one: 45.9%
Win probability after the big kid’s oop: 78.4%
@ Kings
Somehow, despite being acquired for ten cents on the dollar—just MarJon Beauchamp, are you
kidding me?—despite early season injuries, despite having a career-best season, despite dropping thirty pieces, triple-doubles, Kevin Porter Jr. has
still been maligned by Bucks fans. “He’s not a point guard,” they’d say. “He turns the ball over too much.” “He’s taking touches away from Rollins.” “Can’t shoot.” “Leader of the tough-shot express,” they’d continue. “They should trade him.” “Not a winner.” The vitriol echoed loud and clear. And, despite it all, Porter persevered. Ignored the noise. Found the calm. It should come as no surprise then that, with the Bucks on the brink after letting a 26-point lead narrow to just four—then three—with Golden 1 Center coming to life and the rest of the Bucks crumbling in the chaos, that Scoot would be the calming presence.
It begins with an attack. Porter sees the crack in the defence and exploits it—charges to the rim full of steam. He elevates, double-pumps through contact. And-one. It continues with guile. Porter relocates for the catch and Dennis Schröder meets him—but he’s on his heels, wary of what Scoot can do on the drive. And so when Porter pump fakes, one-dribble side-steps and rises for three, Schröder can’t help but panic, swipe with his hands. Three free throws, all of them money. It ends with the streets. Scoot brings it up from the backcourt, weaves in and out between Zach Lavine and Drew Eubanks—left, right, left, right—then decelerates into a left-handed fall-away runner off his
right foot that soars higher than the shot clock before splashing nothing but net. In all, it’s a personal eight-point run that keeps the Bucks afloat, stemming momentum then wrestling it back. Oh, and he busts his ass through a screen to draw the offensive foul on the other end too, leading to a Giannis hook. Two minutes later, after Giannis makes another—officially joining the salvage mission—Scoot throws in a patented step-back 16-footer for good measure. The Bucks go up 11—99-88—and the lead balloons out to 18 before the Kings score again. Give the man his flowers.
Win probability after the Kings cut the lead to three: 72.5%
Win probability after Porter’s floater: 88.8%
@ Warriors
The moment is split—two plays, minutes apart. First, the context. The Bucks are in San Francisco playing the Warriors and fourth quarter baskets by Steph Curry and Gui Santos give the Dubs a 17-point lead, forcing Rivers to call a full timeout. He ponders pulling the regulars but with 9:43 on the clock there’s time for one last push. Portis threes frame a De’Anthony Melton two, giving the Bucks hope, and when Giannis hits two free throws and grabs a defensive board they’re charging right back into it. And then it presents itself: Moment 1A. Following the board, Giannis controls the ball up-court and finds Rollins—a 42% three-point shooter—
all alone on the right wing. He rises up, the form expectedly pure, and, for some reason, the Warriors don’t even contest the shot. A make would cut it to nine, but it hits back rim, bouncing over the backboard and into the shot clock, taking with it a piece of your chest—small but enough to notice. Marques Johnson knows it too: “Those are the types of shots that really help your case when you’re trying to make a comeback of this nature,” he says.
Two minutes later, it closes: Moment 1B. Despite baskets for both sides, the margin remains 12 and the Warriors have possession. Draymond Green—a 33% three-point shooter—receives the ball on the left wing and, like Rollins, rises up without hesitation. Unlike Rollins, the form is clunky, Green’s backpack contorting his posture, and the ball is short, clanking into front rim. And
this must be the difference. Because instead of bouncing over the backboard, it pops up neatly above the cylinder and gently drops through the net like a mother laying her baby in its cot. Or, as Johnson calls, it “Gratuitously bounces in,” and the Warriors lead 112-97. The Bucks fight on gallantly, but the points and minutes equation is just too much and the comeback ultimately falls short.
Win probability after Rollins’ miss: 3.3%
Win probability after Green’s three: 1.0%
@ Lakers
The LA Lakers. Third game of the West Coast road trip. And some things will forever be true. LeBron James being a basketball
god is one of them. He shows it in the fourth, hitting a sidestep three, finishing a driving layup, and then throwing an absolute dime—a behind the back pass on the baseline—to cut it to two in the fourth. Shorty after, he hits a fadeaway middy to tie it, then steals it from Giannis and makes a tough layup to take lead—the Lakers’ first since being up 30-29 in the second. When he subs out following a Bucks timeout at the 6:02 mark, he’s more than doubled Milwaukee’s points in the quarter (9-4).
Yet, the moment actually comes a quarter
earlier and is much more subtle than these fireworks (and the ones that ensue). Following a pinball sequence to end the third that includes
five misses and a turnover in just 31 seconds, Luka Dončić—who’s frustrated and struggling on the night—hits a straightaway three that cuts the Bucks’ lead to eight, and the home crowd effervesces. But on the other end, like an alcoholic at a bar, he just can’t help himself and slaps at the ball trying to get a steal. Instead, he’s called for a foul—his
fifth—and Porter sinks one of the throws, doing just enough to simmer the momentum.
Flash-forward back to the fourth and LeBron has added another four points—up to 13 for the quarter to the Bucks’ 15—and looks to add two more but is denied from behind by Giannis who’s in the midst of his most intense defensive play of the season. Bucks ball, scores tied at 101. On offence, it’s a rough possession, ending in a KPJ step back three that never really has a chance of going in. Then it happens—the tweet of a whistle—and Porter’s going to the line for three. Just as importantly, Luka—one of the game’s best closers—is out of the game. So, after Porter channels his inner Meat Loaf, thinking two out of three ain’t bad, the Lakers are playing catch-up without their clutch time maestro. Of course, the Bucks have
their clutch maestro on the defensive end, and Giannis rises to the occasion, coming up with a steal on LeBron that reminds us all that basketball gods aren’t
real gods (or Greek ones) and the poetic justice—Giannis getting LeBron back and Luka fouling out after drawing the most fouls all season—wraps up a screenplay ending for the Bucks in Hollywood.
Win probability after Luka’s three to end the third: 84.2%
Win probability after he fouls Porter on the ensuing possession: 87.0%
Nine games, nine moments, and the Bucks owned six of them. I guess KPJ was right to channel Meat Loaf after all—two out of three feels pretty damned good. Now let’s see if they can keep it rolling.
