Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo Gets Honest About Doc Rivers' Minutes Restrictions

Gabe Smallson | Feb 24, 2025

Feb 21, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) dribbles the ball as Washington Wizards forward Kyshawn George (18) and Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) defend in the second half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Milwaukee Bucks are in the midst of a four game winning streak in an Eastern Conference race that could not be closer down the stretch.

Improving to 32-24 on the year, they are sitting at the No. 5 seed. Still a half game back from the No. 4 seed, every game counts down the stretch to try and ensure home court advantage in the playoffs.

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Despite 40 points from the Miami Heat's Tyler Herro, Milwaukee edged out the 120-113 win thanks to their two superstars.

Damian Lillard led the way in scoring with 28 and added eight assists as Giannis Antetokounmpo produced a 23-point, 16 rebounds, and seven assist performance along with a steal and a block.

Antetokounmpo's 32 minutes of play were the point of discussion post-game.

Head coach Doc Rivers claimed that he was 55 seconds over the minutes limit for the two-time MVP, but the Greek Freak lightheartedly commented on his playing time.

When asked about his appreciation for Rivers showing trust in letting him outplay the restriction, Antetokounmpo gave a laughter-filled reply.

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"Nah, nah, if he trusted me, he should have played me 36 minutes" Antetokounmpo said with a chuckle. "He played me 40 seconds more. He just couldn't get me out, that's why. He tried to get me out, but he couldn't

"But yeah, hopefully moving forward I don't like playing with minutes restriction. I don't know how long this is going to go for, but hopefully, I can get back to playing my regular minutes and my regular rotation, so I can get my rhythm back."

Asked Giannis Antetokounmpo if he appreciated the trust from Doc Rivers to go over his minutes limit tonight and I enjoyed his response.

Antetokounmpo: https://t.co/72DBdme3ai pic.twitter.com/DWkHsXaWLP

— Eric Nehm (@eric_nehm) February 24, 2025

Antetokounmpo is recently coming back from missing the last six games before the All-Star break due to a strained calf. The first game back, a home win against the Los Angeles Clippers, Antetokounmpo scored 23 points in 24 minutes.

He only played 19 minutes the next game, an away win against the Washington Wizards, and is nearly back to his normal minutes output.

Every game counts down the stretch with only 26 more remaining until the playoffs.

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