Coach Giannis takes over the huddle for the Bucks

Trailing by one point at home in Fiserv Forum, the Milwaukee Bucks called a timeout with 8.8 seconds left on the clock.

What play should they run with the game on the line?

Who should get the last shot? Who is the decoy?

What will the head coach draw up in the huddle?

These are natural question to ask in the final moments of a basketball game. As it turns out for the Bucks, their best player Giannis Antetokounmpo would answer all of them.

Giannis Antetokounmpo designed the play for his game winner 🔥🔥🔥

(h/t @MrBuckBuckNBA) pic.twitter.com/Isyf2IZGni
— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) January 3, 2026

Giannis's brain helps as much as his brawn

Giannis smiles — Oct 6, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) on the sideline in the first half against the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Sometimes your best players see things others don't.

Up until that point, Giannis Antetokounmpo had dominated the Hornets to 28 points on 10/17 FG, getting to the rack and free throw line anytime he wants, no three-pointers needed; he finished with a clean 30 PT on 11/18 FG.

30 PTS - 10 REB - 5 AST (3 TO) - 1 STL with a +21, to be exact.

The Bucks as a team posted a -20 +/- in the 18 minutes Antetokounmpo spent on the bench, yet Giannis somehow finished with a +21+/- in a game Milwaukee won by 1 point.

In the fourth quarter, Antetokounmpo had backed down and bullied Miles Bridges until he found himself under the rack for a backwards finish, using finesse spinning steps through traffic and giant mismatch early-seal post ups over Collin Sexton and Sion James to convert easily at the rim.

Giannis was willing his way to the rack with sheer force and graceful footwork, as he often does.

Mixing in a swing pass 3pt assist to Portis and shot contests galore, Giannis' constant paint postup positioning helped him draw 8 free throw attempts, where he converted a perfect 8/8 FT on the night.

Before the final play was about to be drawn up by Doc Rivers, Giannis Antetokounmpo made a note that Charlotte's defense was switching everything, so using that against them would be the best strategy. Just a few plays before, Giannis had set a screen and completed a handoff with Ryan Rollins, before diving, rolling, and forcing the defense into a full switch, leading to an open three for Rollins.

On the final possession, Milwaukee ran its guards through the paint as decoys, as Giannis ran to the inbounder, Kevin Porter Jr.

KPJ dished the ball to Giannis, sprinted baseline with a fake backdoor cut, came back for the handoff with Giannis to force the switch, and the two rolled right into a wide-open two-on-one alley-oop from Porter to Antetokounmpo to take the lead with 4.7 seconds to play.

"Doc was drawing something up, and Giannis had a feeling they were switching a lot, so he gave us that play, basically, and we executed it," Kevin Porter Jr. said via Eric Nehm of the Athletic.

Giannis forced his defender (Miles Bridges) to switch up into guarding the ball-handling KPJ, as KPJ's defender (Sion James) was stuck chasing the rim-rolling Antetokounmpo from behind – good luck.

In the span of 4.1 seconds, Giannis and the Bucks had gone from looking like they may lose to Charlotte at home to securing a likely win led by a 30pt blunt force outing from Antetokounmpo.

That's the difference that having a superstar as cerebral and motivational as Giannis Antetokounmpo on your team makes; now let's see if the Bucks can get Coach Giannis some help.