Bucks season hits new low with Giannis vs. fans booing battle, and trade deadline doesn't offer much hope

MILWAUKEE -- The Bucks fell by 45 to the Nets last month and are responsible for 20% of the Wizards' wins, but they managed to hit a new low point on Tuesday: a 33-point home loss to a Timberwolves team that was missing Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert, complete with a booing match between the crowd and Giannis Antetokounmpo. 

The vibes in Milwaukee this season have never been worse. 

A surprise 4-1 start that included wins over the Knicks and Warriors briefly provided hope that the Bucks could stake a claim in the wide-open Eastern Conference, but any optimism has long since faded. Antetokounmpo has missed 14 games due to injury, trade talk (which Antetokounmpo tried to put to bed earlier this month) has been rampant and the team has constantly been left trying to answer for embarrassing results. 

Tuesday's explanation was travel and "dead legs." The Bucks had just returned from a four-game West Coast stint late on Sunday night, which coach Doc Rivers was quick to point out. "I knew this was gonna be a difficult game coming back from a road trip, having one game and then leaving tomorrow," Rivers said. 

The Timberwolves were cruising into the paint with ease from the opening tip, getting whatever they wanted at the rim and behind the arc. By halftime, the Wolves were up by 31 and the Fiserv Forum crowd voiced their frustration with a chorus of boos. Early in the third quarter, Antetokounmpo answered back by booing the crowd and delivering a double thumbs down after a tough and-one. 

The Bucks showed a brief bit of fight in the third, but never made a serious comeback and the Wolves went on to a 139-106 win while shooting 85.2% in the restricted area and 52.4% from 3-point range. This was the second-largest defeat this season for the Bucks, and their fifth by at least 20 points. 

"Never. I've never been a part [of that]. Have I? I don't think so. Something new for me," Antetokounmpo said when he was first asked about the boos. (The Bucks have been booed at home before, notably during a 2024 loss to the Jazz weeks before Adrian Griffin was fired.) 

Antetokounmpo continued: "I thrive through adversity. I thrive when people don't believe in me. Doesn't matter if I'm on the road, if I'm at home, if I'm at my family dinner, if I'm at the practice facility with my teammates, it doesn't really matter. So yeah, I've never been a part of something like that before, so it was something new for me. I like it, though. I love it."

When asked a follow up at the end of his media session, however, he voiced a different opinion. 

"I was definitely booing back. When I get booed, I boo back. I've been doing that all season. You guys haven't been with me on the road. Whenever I get booed, I boo back, Antetokounmpo said.

"I play basketball for my teammates, I play basketball for myself and my family. When people don't believe in me I don't tend to be with them, I tend to be against them. I tend to do what I'm here to do, what I'm good at. I think I'm like a maverick. I've always been that way, so it won't change now. It doesn't matter if I'm at home or away. I've never been a part of something like that before and I don't think it's fair. I don't. But everybody has their opinion to do what they want to do. I'm not gonna tell them what to do and how they should act when we don't play hard or when we lose games or when we're not where we're supposed to be. And I don't think anybody has the right to tell me what or how I should act on the basketball court after I've been here 13 years and I'm basically the all-time leader in everything."

Boos not the biggest concern

The back-and-forth between Antetokounmpo and the crowd, and his thoughts on the matter, are going to steal the headlines for good reason. But his quotes about the team's performance were even more concerning. 

"Playing hard. Playing the right way. Playing selfless basketball, which we don't," Antetokounmpo said, when asked how the Bucks can get back on track. "Those three things are important. I know they're important for you to win, but right now, there's so many things that we can do better."

He wasn't done. 

"Can we just play harder? Can we just play the right way? Can we create (an) advantage for the next player? Can we just play for our teammates, play for the team, play for ourselves?" Antetokounmpo asked rhetorically. "Let's just start with that and I think everything else will follow."

Antetokounmpo and his teammates have spoken about consistency and needing to play the right way countless times throughout the season. As the midway point approaches, it's clear the message isn't getting across. Teams that still have these sort of issues this late into the season rarely turn things around. 

"Maybe my voice is just a broken record and guys are tired and guys might tend to do what they want to do," Antetokounmpo said. "I don't know, but as a leader, it doesn't matter. Being a leader is like the same thing as being a dad. You just gotta keep on being available, keep being consistent with your words and your actions over and over and over again and one day, you hope that the message is going to go through."

NBA midseason awards picks: Experts choose MVP, DPOY, Rookie of the Year and more at halfway mark

Brad Botkin

Is a 'win-now' trade even worth it?

The Bucks have been at the forefront of trade discussions since preseason, when Shams Charania reported that there were genuine discussions in the summer about sending Antetokounmpo to the Knicks. There have been plenty of further Antetokounmpo rumors since then, though at this point it appears he'll remain in Milwaukee through the end of the season. 

Not only does it seem as though the Bucks will keep the two-time MVP, the team has widely been regarded as a buyer ahead of the deadline. They've been linked to Ja Morant, Anthony Davis, Michael Porter Jr., Zach LaVine, Jerami Grant and Malik Monk. 

Some of those targets are more realistic than others, but with so much smoke it would be surprising if the Bucks stand pat at the deadline. But is a trade even worth it? 

The Bucks are 17-23, rank 21st in offensive rating (113.3), 20th in defensive rating (116.2) and 21st in net rating (minus-2.9). They're in 11th place in the East, 1 ½ games behind the Bulls for the final Play-In Tournament spot, and are going to have a hard time climbing above ninth. 

Any two-for-one deal that packaged fan favorite Bobby Portis and Kyle Kuzma -- their easiest path to a bigger-salary player like LaVine or Grant -- would further strain that Bucks' already limited depth while doing little to boost their playoff chances. 

There's more upside with a bigger swing for someone like Morant or Davis, but also more risk. Furthermore, the Grizzlies and Mavericks would likely require picks and/or young players as part of the deal. Likewise, the Nets would likely want at least one first for Porter Jr., and rightfully so given how he's played. 

The Bucks don't control any of their first-round picks until 2031, however, and giving up that asset with no guarantee of playoff success or retaining Antetokounmpo long-term would be a serious mistake. Their desire to make the most of whatever remaining time they have left with Antetokounmpo is understandable, but they shouldn't mortgage any part of their future in the process.