Bucks Guard Sends Clear Giannis Antetokounmpo Message Amid Dominance

Nov 7, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA: Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) drives for the basket against Chicago Bulls guard Kevin Huerter (13) in the 3rd quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

The Milwaukee Bucks have, well, bucked expectations to get off to a solid 6-3 start after undergoing a serious roster overhaul this offseason.

Without nine-time All-Star point guard Damian Lillard, the Bucks have leaned on their revitalized backcourt to help offset the added playmaking duties of nine-time All-NBA superstar power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. To replace departed former All-Defensive Team starting center Brook Lopez, Milwaukee upgraded the position by inking the guy who obliterated him during the playoffs while with the Indiana Pacers, 3-and-D rim-running big man Myles Turner.

More news: Bucks Head Coach Doc Rivers Sends Giannis Antetokounmpo Warning to NBA

The roster changes have paid dividends.

New Bucks free agent signing Cole Anthony recently revealed that, to his thinking, Antetokounmpo is the single-best basketball player in the universe, per Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

"He's the best player in the world, in my opinion."

Cole keeps it real about Giannis. pic.twitter.com/SaaC3mMsLO

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) October 25, 2025

"I mean, like, he's the best player in the world in my opinion," Anthony said after a 122-116 win against the Toronto Raptors last month. "He's a beast. And he's out there and he just affects the game in so many different ways maybe it's why you're not checking like 'oh, he's got 20 rebounds, too.' You're looking at the (31) points, you're looking at the seven assists, you're looking at him holding down the paint and locking stuff down."

Through his eight healthy games so farm the 6-foot-11 "Greek Freak" has been averaging 33.4 points on .642/.538/.634 shooting splits, 12.9 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1.1 blocks and 1.0 swipes a night.

'This Dude's A Beast'

"He's a heck of a player, man," Anthony said. "It's really different getting to see him every day in practice and in games than seeing him a couple times a year. I'm like yo, this dude's a beast."

Next up for Milwaukee is a 2:30 p.m. CT matinee clash Sunday against another former MVP power forward, 15-time All-Star Kevin Durant, and his new squad, the 5-3 Houston Rockets.

Per the league's latest injury report, Antetokounmpo is considered probable to play through the lingering left knee patellar tendinopathy that has to this point cost him just one game. Starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. is out for at least the next several weeks as he continues to recover from a right knee meniscus surgery. Reserve wing Taurean Prince is out indefinitely with a strained neck.

For Houston, only two players who have yet to suit up this year — point guard Fred VanVleet (ACL tear) and 3-and-D forward Dorian Finney-Smith (left ankle surgery) — have been ruled out, from among the team's standard roster.

For more news and notes on the Milwaukee Bucks, visit Milwaukee Bucks on SI.