Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return was supposed to steady the Milwaukee Bucks, but the night told a different story. Even with 30 points, 15 rebounds, and 8 assists, Milwaukee still fell 118-109 to the New York Knicks in the NBA Cup. Naturally, you could feel the frustration, and the loss left Giannis admitting something he probably didn’t want to say out loud.

“Obviously, you want to engage, you want to win tournaments. We had the opportunity to go to Vegas twice in a row. Not going to Vegas and be able to gamble on the 34 red, one more time. I think it’s going to be very, very tough for me,” Antetokounmpo told NBA insider Michael Scotto after the game.

This was Milwaukee’s seventh straight loss. While that alone should be enough to build up some frustration, the fact that the Bucks won’t make it to the next round of the NBA Cup further added to it.

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“But at the end of the day, I just want to win. We lost seven in a row. I don’t remember the last time I lost seven in a row. So we just got to lock in, we have Brooklyn, which hasn’t been playing as of late very well. We’ve got to be able to get them up tomorrow.” The Bucks superstar further emphasized his point, concluding his statement.

Although Giannis Antetokounmpo was upset about the defeat, he still joked about missing out on the whopping $530,933 each player from the winning team of the NBA Cup would get this season. Last season, he and his teammates were able to secure the bag, thanks to their dominant run, but unfortunately, the 31-year-old will have to return home empty-handed this time around.

This comes after the Bucks finished third in the East Group C behind the Knicks and the Miami Heat, both of whom will now play in the quarter-finals. Nonetheless, it’s not the end of the world for Milwaukee or the Greek Freak, as they still have an entire season to look forward to. However, first, they get out of this slump, for which Antetokounmpo believes his team needs to change its mindset.

Giannis Antetokounmpo demands a change from his teammates

While Giannis Antetokounmpo did not miss a beat despite returning from a four-game hiatus, his supporting cast couldn’t keep up. Ultimately, that led to the Milwaukee Bucks suffering their seventh straight defeat and dropping to 8-12 for the season. And as Giannis mentioned, it’s been forever since Milwaukee lost this many games in a row.

In fact, the last time they lost seven games straight was way back in 2014, the Greek Freak’s rookie year. So, after Friday’s brutal loss, the former NBA champion made a plea to his teammates to begin turning around the team’s season before it’s too late.

“Nobody should have a personal agenda. Nobody should worry about what they want from themselves,” he said. “Worry only about winning mentality. Winning mindset. The more we can win the games, the more everything takes care of itself.”

The forward then went ahead, even to point out a few more things he and his teammates could improve, apart from changing their mindset.

Giannis Antetokounmpo stated that despite the Bucks’ struggles with a few injuries, this is the time for other teammates to step up and take the spotlight for themselves, something they haven’t been able to do yet.

The Greek superstar emphasized the importance of everyone taking shots. And even if they miss, they shouldn’t let that affect the rest of their game. Well, that’s something that Milwaukee players will need to focus on as they now shift their focus to the Brooklyn Nets, whom they face on Saturday night, hoping to snap their seven-game losing streak and get their season back on track.