The Milwaukee Bucks fell to 17-23 on the season with an embarrassing and disheartening 139-106 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night. What made the loss all the more frustrating was that Minnesota was without their two best players, Anthony Edwards (foot) and Rudy Gobert (suspension). Meanwhile, Milwaukee was without center Myles Turner (illness), but otherwise had their full roster available.
Unfortunately, the night was “highlighted” by the home fans at Fiserv Forum booing the Bucks and Giannis Antetokounmpo booing them right back.
Read More:Bucks fans clap back at Giannis after explanation for booing back
After the game mercifully ended, Giannis and head coach Doc Rivers had two very different thoughts about what went wrong.
Doc Rivers thinks the Milwaukee Bucks had dead legs, Giannis Antetokounmpo does not
Jan 13, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves forward Julius Randle (30) takes a shot against Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) in the second quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
After the game, Rivers met with the media at the podium as he usually does, and told them that he thought his Bucks team played with “dead legs” in their first game since coming home from a four-game West Coast road trip.
Speaking to reporters in the locker room, Giannis said he was not buying that excuse, instead insisting that it was a lack of effort.
Big difference in postgame quotes between Doc & Giannis
Doc: “I thought we were playing with dead legs.”
Giannis when asked if he thought it was dead legs: “I don’t think it’s dead legs. Come on… that cannot be an excuse. Dead legs cannot be an excuse. We have to be better.” pic.twitter.com/5yYiMHHnRL
— Nathan Marzion (@nathanmarzion) January 14, 2026
As one can see from the post above, Giannis did not want to hear anything about being tired or having dead legs being an excuse for Milwaukee’s performance. Rather, he wants the team to put in better effort and play harder.
Giannis had 25 points, eight rebounds, and five assists (along with seven turnovers) against Minnesota. He was the only Bucks player with more than 14 points.
For More Great Wisconsin Sports Content
Follow me on Twitter at @theotherRobin19 and follow us @WiSportsHeroics for more great content. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest in Wisconsin sports, click here!