The Milwaukee Bucks will have to look to 2026 for their first three-game winning streak of the season, as they lost 114-113 to the Washington Wizards for the second time this month. CJ McCollum spoiled
Giannis’ return to Fiserv Forum, as he nailed a mid-range jumper with one second left after the Bucks held a three-point lead with 33 seconds on the clock. The Wizards now hold the season series edge 2-1 over the Bucks. Read our full summary of the game here and catch a six-minute audio recap on the Bucks+ podcast, Bucks In Six Minutes, below.
Player Grades
Giannis Antetokounmpo
28 minutes, 33 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 6 turnovers, 12/20 FG, 9/14 FT, -4
Giannis gave the fans a show, despite still being on a minutes restriction in his third game back from injury. His absence during the third quarter while the Wizards made a push was felt throughout the rest of the game.
Grade: A
Myles Turner
31 minutes, 13 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 blocks, 2 steals, 4/6 3PT, +12
This was definitely one of the better games for Turner, especially on the defensive end with a season-high five blocks. You’d have liked to see him make a two-pointer, as he went 0/4 on those, but it was still a strong game from the man in the middle.
Grade: B+
Kevin Porter Jr.
39 minutes, 19 points, 5 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 turnovers, 9/17 FG, 1/7 3PT, +10
Porter was a good secondary scorer last night, but he seemed lost at times defensively. Need more for KPJ on that end.
Grade: B-
Ryan Rollins
39 minutes, 16 points, 7 assists, 7 rebounds, 3 turnovers, 5/13 FG, 4/7 3PT, +3
While Rollins struggled from the field, he played a solid game overall. He hit a big-time three to tie the game late, and was one of the Bucks’ better defensive players.
Grade: B
AJ Green
34 minutes, 9 points, 2 assists, 2 rebounds, 3/8 3PT, +12
Green continues to shake off the rust, having one of his better shooting games since coming off the AC joint injury. He also had some really good individual defensive moments against Tre Johnson and McCollum, despite the game-winning shot being hit over him.
Grade: B-
Bobby Portis
20 minutes, 13 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 4/11 FG, 3/6 3PT, 2/2 FT, -11
The 13 points are a bit deceiving, because this was a below-average game for BP. He got called for a technical for punching the basket padding after not getting a foul call, and was nearly unplayable after that. He did hit some big threes later on, but it was not the best day at the office for Portis.
Grade: C–
Kyle Kuzma
21 minutes, 5 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 turnovers, 2/3 FG, 1/2 FT, -5
Kuzma was largely invisible last night. He did make a layup and a dunk but didn’t have much of an impact outside of that.
Grade: C-
Gary Trent Jr.
15 minutes, 0 points, 1 rebound, 0/4 FG, 0/3 3PT, -12
The new ‘do didn’t help GTJ. He couldn’t get his shot to fall and his defense wasn’t good. He continues to be the plus/minus victim, but last night’s number was mostly self-inflicted.
Grade: D
Gary Harris
11 minutes, 5 points, 2/2 FG, 1/1 3PT, -10
Harris has really become a solid end-of-rotation player for the Bucks. Doc praised his ability to do the little things night in and night out. He did just that in this game, despite the plus/minus number not showing it.
Grade: C+
Doc Rivers
I, and many others here at Brew Hoop, have made the call that Doc Rivers shouldn’t be the head coach of the Bucks anymore. There have been excuses and some legitimate reasons for where the Bucks are at, but there’s no excuse to lose to the Washington Wizards twice in one season, with Giannis healthy for all three games so far. This can’t be excused as an early-season struggle or the team trying to find itself. Under Doc, this is who the team is.
Grade: D–
DNP-CD: Cole Anthony, Amir Coffey, Jericho Sims, Andre Jackson Jr. Thanasis Antetokounmpo
Inactive: Taurean Prince, Pete Nance, Mark Sears, Alex Antetokounmpo
Bonus Bucks Bits
- Doc Rivers didn’t even let the first question finish before saying they didn’t deserve to win last night’s game, calling out what he sees as emotional immaturity:
“We had every shot we wanted at the end of the game, our execution was flawless, even the last play, but sometimes the basketball gods don’t let you win when you don’t play right. We’ve been great the last two games. Tonight, we didn’t pass the ball to each other and we didn’t guard the ball. When you play like that, you lose the game.”
“I don’t know who said it, I think it was Bobby or Myles, that we have to play hard every night, we gotta get out of our feelings. I thought we were in our feelings the whole night tonight, and that’s emotional immaturity that we played with tonight.”
- Giannis agreed with Doc on the idea that the Bucks didn’t deserve to win last night, and gave his own view of where the Bucks sit as they try to figure this out:
“In basketball, sometimes, you play the way you play, you might not deserve to win the game, but you still win the game. Unfortunately, (tonight) wasn’t that night. There’s been a lot of nights I’ve been a part of ugly wins, they call it. I don’t care, when I go back home, I don’t care if it’s ugly or pretty or nasty or dirty, I still love my win.
Coach Doc is not wrong. I think we didn’t play at a high level; we need to trust one another. We kept them in the game too much and at the end of the day, we have to understand that either we are going to build good habits or we’re not. Every game counts right now, so we can go the other way or figure out the way to win games. It’s just hard when maybe some people are trying to do the right thing and other people are not trying to. It can be discouraging at times.”
- After making his fifth and sixth free throws of the night in the second quarter, Giannis passed big man Tom Chambers for 39th all-time in free throw makes. Giannis now has 5,071 and needs just nine more to pass Chet Walker on the list next, who has 5,079 makes.
- Per Justin Garcia, the Bucks ran a zone defense in 15 possessions during the third quarter. The Wizards scored nine points in those possessions, and flipped a seven-point Bucks lead into a two-point Wizards lead heading into the fourth quarter.
- Giannis also became just the 11th player in NBA history to record 80 or more games of 30+ points and 15+ rebounds. It’s the fourth time he’s done it this season, which second in the NBA in those type of games.
- Ryan Rollins scored in double figures for the 33rd time this season, which is a season-high for the 23-year-old.
Up Next
The Milwaukee Bucks will begin 2026 with their second game of the week against the Charlotte Hornets, this time in Milwaukee. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Central time on Friday from Fiserv Forum, and it will be televised on FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin.
