Wizards May Have Broke Up Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo

Just a few days ago, the Washington Wizards readied themselves for a Monday night showdown that many fans were rolling their eyes at before the ball was tipped off. It was time for them to play basketball, and they'd have to once again scratch and claw to avoid another near-inevitable loss at home.

It was just the sort of game that the young Wizards had learned to prepare for 50 times per season; a likely waxing at the hands of a clearly-superior opponent with a superstar leading their charge. Giannis Antetokounmpo's Milwaukee Bucks were hurting with a 9-12 record, but even they couldn't stoop as low as to lose to a two-win squad missing their best player in Alex Sarr. Right?

Now, it's important to note that the Wizards were coming off of their first home-court win of the season after demolishing the Atlanta Hawks two days before Thanksgiving, but Giannis is the sort of player who can win a game by himself.

And, for the most part, he got his points in DC, scoring 26 on 10/17 shooting, but that wasn't enough to keep the hungry Wizards at bay. Clutch shooting by the old guard and strapping defense out of Bilal Coulibaly helped eek out their closest win of the season to improve to 3-17, inadvertently sending their shocked opponents into a downward spiral that's still continuing to expand.

And Bilal Coulibaly caps off a strong night of defense against Giannis with the steal and dagger dunk to draw his sixth and final foul. Back to back wins at home pic.twitter.com/XmkPbYVNqJ
— Henry J. Brown (@henryjbr_sports) December 2, 2025

Wizards' Role in Giannis' Future

Reports surfaced later in the week that Antetokounmpo and the team have begin mutually exploring whether he's best fit to remain with the only NBA team he's ever known long-term, the latest in a months-long soap opera pertaining to his on-and-off trade rumors.

His happiness in Milwaukee has long gone questioned ever since the team started gradually slipping from the contending expectations he'd grown used to, had a lot to soak in as the Bucks assembled an unimpressive team for this fall. Now, it's looking like a possibility that he really may be moving on after years of unimpressive team-building have finally mounted.

Just in: Giannis Antetokounmpo and his agent Alex Saratsis have started conversations with the Milwaukee Bucks about the two-time NBA MVP's future – and discussing whether his best fit is staying or elsewhere, sources tell ESPN. A resolution is expected in the coming weeks. pic.twitter.com/NfrpL2Ffvr
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 3, 2025

The inexperienced Wizards stars understood the opportunity they had in taking on one of the league's very best players, a two-time MVP and NBA Finals MVP who'll glide into the Hall of Fame as quickly as possible upon retirement, but no way could anyone have predicted that they'd be the ones to dole out such a timely win, the straw that broke Giannis' back after weeks of keeping his mouth shut.

They certainly talked their talk postgame, with Coulibaly particularly relishing the defensive job he did on the Bucks legend.

"They just told me you can do whatever you want, but just stop [Giannis]," he said following the win, "so I did whatever I wanted."

Washington's rebuilding squad's breakthrough didn't cause the dormant trade rumors to explode, but they can take credit for triggering a storyline that's sure to warp the rest of their conference for the foreseeable future.

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