The Milwaukee Bucks are 33-25 this year and looking to go nine games over .500 for the first time this season. Currently holding the fourth seed in the NBA Eastern Conference, Milwaukee is attempting to keep pace with the surging Detroit Pistons, who have won eight of their last ten games and are quickly moving up in the standings. The Indiana Pacers are also 33-25, but are in fifth in the East as the Bucks own the tiebreaker against them.
Milwaukee will look to win their second game in a row overall when they take on the Dallas Mavericks, who are 32-28 and ninth in the NBA Western Conference. Led by former Bucks head coach Jason Kidd, Dallas is the defending Western Conference Champions, but have had a rougher go of things this season, especially since trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Fortunately for Milwaukee, Giannis Antetokounmpo will be active against the Mavericks, a team that he has performed exceptionally well against in the past.
5. August 8, 2020: Bucks 132, Mavericks 136
Many Bucks fans will always wonder what the 2019-20 season would have been like had COVID-19 not shut down the world. At the time of the suspension of play, Milwaukee was the most dominant team in the NBA. This loss to the Mavericks after play resumed in the bubble of Orlando dropped their record to 55-15.
This particular game saw Giannis put up 34 points, 13 rebounds, one assist, and five blocks. Perhaps surprisingly now looking back on the contest, Brook Lopez also had 34 points to go with seven rebounds and two blocks. Khris Middleton added 21 points, six rebounds, and 11 assists.
All of that, however, was not enough to overcome a Doncic triple-double which saw him post 36 points, 14 rebounds, and 19 assists.
4. April 2, 2017: Bucks 105, Mavericks 109
Back before he had won either of his two NBA MVP Awards and when Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitski was still playing, the Greek Freak had one of the best games of his then-young career in a Bucks loss.
On this particular night, Giannis had 31 points, 15 rebounds, nine assists, four steals, and two blocks. The rest of the team, though, struggled to score. Only four other players had double-figures in this game: Matthew Dellavedova (14), Middleton (13), Tony Snell (12), and Thon Maker (11).
3. November 18, 2023: Bucks 132, Mavericks 125
Fast forward six years from that 2017 game and the Bucks are a very different team. At the time that his game took place in 2023, Giannis and Middleton were the only players from that 2017 team remaining on the roster.
The now two-time NBA MVP, though, was still putting up big numbers against Dallas though. In this game, he had 40 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and a block. Damian Lillard added 27 points and 12 assists while Pat Connaughton added 16 points off the bench.
What was most impressive about the win, perhaps, was that Milwaukee was able to overcome 35 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists from Doncic as well as 39 points from Kyrie Irving.
2. December 16, 2019: Bucks 116, Mavericks 120
As mentioned previously, the Bucks were the most dominant team in the NBA during the 2019-20 season before the pandemic. However, the seemed to struggle against Dallas for some reason that year. This particular loss dropped their record to 24-4 on the year.
Playing without Jrue Holiday in this game, Giannis had 48 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block. The rest of the starting lineup, though, struggled to score. Outside of their MVP star, the rest of the starting lineup was 9-34 from the field and scored a combined 23 points.
1. February 3, 2024: Bucks 129, Mavericks 117
The last game that Giannis played against the Mavericks was his best game against that franchise. In a victory a little over a year ago, the Greek Freak had 48 points, six rebounds, 10 assists, five steals, and a block. He was 20-28 from the floor, which included a 2-5 night from three.
Lillard added 30 points and eight assists for the Bucks, who overcame yet another Doncic masterclass (40 points, nine rebounds, 11 assists).
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