The Milwaukee Bucks couldn’t extend their three-game winning streak and suffered a crushing 140-106 defeat to the New York Knicks. The loss dropped the Bucks to sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings, and star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo didn’t shy away from acknowledging the team’s struggles against top-tier opponents in the conference.
The defeat brought the Bucks’ record against the Cavaliers, Celtics, and Knicks — the top three teams in the East — to a troubling 0-8. Following the game, Antetokounmpo admitted the team’s shortcomings in those matchups.
“Yeah, we’re horrible [against those teams],” Antetokounmpo said after the game via ESPN. “We’ve gotta get our stuff together. It’s as simple as that. We did not beat Boston, we did not beat the Cavs, we didn’t beat the Knicks — those are the top three teams, and we’ve played horribly against them”.
Despite delivering another double-double with 24 points and 13 rebounds, Antetokounmpo and the Bucks couldn’t come close to challenging the Knicks. However, the Greek superstar expressed confidence that the current team is better than the one that visited Madison Square Garden earlier in the season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks scores during the second half of the game against the Portland Trail Blazers. (John Fisher/Getty Images)
“We’re definitely, I believe, a better team than the first time we played them,” Antetokounmpo told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “But at the end of the day, they came in, played way harder than us, better than us, and they were able to get the win”.
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Bucks show flashes but fall short
The Greek star emphasized that the Bucks are playing much better basketball compared to their rough 2-7 start to the season. However, Antetokounmpo acknowledged that the improvement still falls short when it comes to facing the top teams in the conference.
“I think we’re a way better team [now] than the November team. We’ve proven it by playing good basketball for longer stretches,” Antetokounmpo explained. “But at the end of the day, when we’re playing the better teams, we’ve got to do a better job. They’re not just going to give it to us — we’ve got to take it. They’re not just going to fold”.
Kris Middleton shares Giannis’ frustrations
Khris Middleton, who scored in double figures off the bench alongside Damian Lillard and Antetokounmpo, echoed the sentiments of his teammate. He stressed the need to perform against all levels of competition, particularly the elite teams.
“It definitely matters,” Middleton said. “We’ve gotta win. We can’t just beat the OK teams, the not-so-good teams; we have to beat all teams — the great teams, the good teams, in between everything. It’s a long season … we’ve gotta figure out a way to beat the better teams. I think we will”.
