The 2025 to 26 season has flipped completely for Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks in a matter of weeks. Milwaukee opened the year with four wins in five games, highlighted by an impressive result against the New York Knicks, who entered the season as the top favorite in the East. Everything changed afterward. The team has stumbled through a rough stretch and their loss to the struggling Washington Wizards on Monday night pushed them to 9 wins and 13 losses. They have dropped eight of their last nine games and continue to slide in the standings.
Some observers argue it is still early in the season, but former NBA All Star DeMarcus Cousins sees the situation differently. He believes the Bucks should already feel a real sense of urgency, warning that their continued slide could put them at risk of losing Giannis Antetokounmpo if they fail to turn things around.
It's very dark times in Milwaukee.
The Bucks have lost 8 of their last 9 games including a shocker last night against the Wizards in DC.
With Milwaukee sitting at 9-13, the elephant in the room is what will happen to Giannis? Boogie believes it's time for panic š .ā¦ pic.twitter.com/yZadfuZqGr
ā Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) December 2, 2025
āIf Iām Milwaukee, Iām definitely in a panic-type situation. And it didnāt just start this season. This was chatter in the off-season, this previous offseason. So this is something thatās kind of been looming in the dark for a while now. And this roster construction and the way this season is going so far definitely isnāt helping the situation, so I do think this is a time for them to panic,ā Cousins remarked during his appearance in the Run it Back podcast.
Bucks bracing for Giannis Antetokounmpoās exit
Nov 29, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) reacts after scoring his 21,000th career point in the third quarter against the Brooklyn Nets at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
Giannis Antetokounmpo intensified the conversation around his future when he scrubbed almost all Bucks content from his social media pages. Across Instagram, X, and Snapchat, he updated his profile to the single word Athlete and left very little that connects him to the Bucks.
On Instagram, the only photos that still show him in a Milwaukee uniform come from the 2021 championship celebration and the 2024 NBA Cup run. On X, he removed every post made after the 2021 title, a move that immediately revived questions about where he sees himself moving forward.
Nov 28, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) looks back during the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
āItās time for them to make some moves, serious moves, like bringing in some real talent, veteran talent that can help move the needle this season and possibly keep him in place and keep him at home. But this season, as of right now, definitely isnāt a good start as far as keeping Giannis in town,ā added the former NBA All-Star center.