The Milwaukee Bucks have seemingly turned around their season after a sluggish start. Currently, they’re 15-12, fifth in the Eastern Conference, 7-3 in their last 10 games, and have been playing much better as of late.
However, Giannis Antetokoumnpo isn’t very happy about one specific thing.
“I Can Give You Facts” Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Releases Irate Comment (Report)
In recent years, the Milwaukee Bucks have been one of the NBA’s best teams, which has given them plenty of opportunities to play on Christmas. Each of the previous six seasons, Giannis Antetokounmpo & Co. have played on Dec. 25, and we hoped that trend continued this season:
Unfortunately, the Bucks will be on the Christmas Day sidelines for the first time since 2017 this week. The NBA has five games lined up for Christmas 2024 and Doc Rivers’ squad has been left out in the cold this time around.
With several of the league’s best players on the roster, the Bucks’ frustration regarding the snub is more than understandable. On Monday, Antetokounmpo opened up to The Athletic’s Eric Nehm about how he feels regarding the lack of Christmas action.
“There’s gotta be an algorithm because if it’s — how can I say — like a popularity contest, I can give you facts,” the two-time NBA MVP said. “Two of the NBA All-Star starters, (Damian Lillard) and Giannis, and the All-Star MVP, right? And the No. 1 vote-getter — not in the East, in the whole NBA — is not in the Christmas game? What?”
If the NBA does decide its Christmas Day slate on popularity, Antetokounmpo has the right to be upset. As mentioned, both he and Lillard started for the Eastern Conference during the 2024 NBA All-Star Game while the “Greek Freak” paced his peers with an astounding 5,427,874 votes.
So if popularity doesn’t decide the holiday schedule, Antetokounmpo is wondering if the Bucks’ location and fanbase size may have played a role in the snub.
“Because we got a small market? Maybe that’s the case,” Antetokounmpo said. “Or I want to believe what I tell you, I think there’s an algorithm within the NBA that they choose which team will get the most attention, the most viewership that day.”
Giannis has been lighting it up recently. Here is his last five games:
| Date | Team | Opp | Result | GS | MP | FG | FGA | FG% | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | FT | FTA | FT% | ORB | DRB | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS | GmSc | +/- | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-12-20 | MIL | @ | CLE | L 101-124 | * | 30 | 13 | 22 | .591 | 1 | 1 | 1.000 | 6 | 10 | .600 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 33 | 25.5 | -19 |
| 2024-12-14 | MIL | ATL | W 110-102 | * | 38 | 10 | 15 | .667 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 18 | .667 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 32 | 36.4 | 3 | ||
| 2024-12-10 | MIL | ORL | W 114-109 | * | 36 | 15 | 24 | .625 | 0 | 2 | .000 | 7 | 12 | .583 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 37 | 25.8 | 5 | |
| 2024-12-08 | MIL | @ | BRK | W 118-113 | * | 38 | 14 | 22 | .636 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 10 | .600 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 34 | 28.8 | 10 | |
| 2024-12-06 | MIL | @ | BOS | L 105-111 | * | 36 | 13 | 25 | .520 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 4 | 6 | .667 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 20.3 | -4 |
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