Why Nuggets May Struggle Containing Giannis Antetokoumpo, Bucks

The Denver Nuggets' next task that lies ahead for their regular season is the challenge of the Milwaukee Bucks and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo for their first of two meetings on the season, and one that for the Nuggets, will be forced to be done without their own MVP in Nikola Jokic, who's out with a hyperextended knee for the next couple of weeks.

Any time Giannis comes to town for any team, it won't be a walk in the park to contain him, even though the Bucks star hasn't won a game in Denver since 2021. But this time around, things could be especially harder for the Nuggets to hold down the dominant two-way star, and might even lead to them stamping a second-straight home loss in the books.

Where Could Denver Struggle Against the Bucks?

Feb 27, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) drives for the basket against Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon (32) in the second quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

When taking a step back to look at the scouting report for this matchup in particular, one area that the Nuggets don't stack up quite well against the Bucks is their size to match up with Giannis––which, when at full health, Denver could have an ideal and deep arsenal to roll out defensively. Yet, with their current injury implications, it is a plan that can get derailed rather quickly.

Cameron Johnson is out of the mix with a knee injury. Spencer Jones is deemed questionable with his own knee injury. Nikola Jokic and Jonas Valanciunas being out will keep the Nuggets' center rotation depleted. Even while Aaron Gordon has been gradually finding his place back into the rotation, he is still both coming off the bench and on a minutes restriction.

That lack of size definitely didn't work too well in the Nuggets' latest performance against the Hawks on their home floor at Ball Arena; another team that uses length around their lineup to their advantage and overcame Denver in an 87-110 blowout.

Giannis, though, is a different beast than what the Hawks bring offensively, which, with his unparalleled combination of size, length, athleticism, will leave the Nuggets' already-struggling defense both strained and might be left with few answers to consistently hold him down throughout the night.

Since returning from his mid-season calf injury that forced him out for eight straight games, Giannis has been averaging 29.7 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 3.9 assists while shooting an effective 67.5% from the field, leading Milwaukee to a 5-2 record in that span.

Without the versatility and switchable defenders at their disposal as they'd typically like to have, Denver will have to make adjustments to their plan defensively, which has been shaky as is so far this season. The Nuggets are currently the NBA's 25th-ranked unit in terms of defensive rating (118.3), rank in the top ten for points allowed per game, and as they've lost six of their last ten, it's hard to say momentum is on their side at this point in time.

Maybe if Jamal Murray is healthy and able to give the Nuggets a real spark offensively to help counter those defensive ups and downs that may be bound to transpire, there's a chance on their home floor against a sub-.500 Bucks team. But with Milwaukee getting back on track and Giannis slowly returning to an MVP level, Denver will have to work for it against the Greek Freak to claim win number 26 on the regular season.

Where Could Denver Struggle Against the Bucks?

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