Giannis Antetokounmpo Blasts Bucks’ Defensive Effort vs. Rockets: ‘There Was No Pride’

The Milwaukee Bucks are 25-11 and sitting in second place in the Eastern Conference, but Giannis Antetokounmpo knows the effort on the defensive end is a significant issue. He also has no problem making that known publicly, openly calling out the Bucks’ defensive effort following a 112-108 loss to the Houston Rockets on Saturday.

“Offense is gonna be there some nights, and some nights, it’s not going to be there,” Antetokounmpo said, per BasketNews.com.

“Your defensive effort, though, has got to be there. And defensively, our effort wasn’t there. There was no pride. … Guys were just driving the ball, straight line l drive, getting to the paint, overhelping, shooting 3s, and offensive rebounds. There was nothing. This wasn’t the Milwaukee Bucks. This is not who we are,” Antetokounmpo continued.

On a night in which ‘The Greek Freak’ poured in 45 points, he did state that the team was better in the third and fourth quarters but doubled down on the concerns from the first half, stating the Bucks “have to be better” defensively.

When the Bucks made the trade to acquire Damian Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers this offseason, it was expected they’d take a hit defensively, as one of the team’s top defenders, Jrue Holiday, was part of that deal. But while Milwaukee finds itself in a position to make a run at the No. 1 seed in the East, Antetokounmpo is doing his best to ensure there’s no complacency on the defensive end.