The Milwaukee Bucks lost Damian Lillard just weeks ahead of the postseason starting. The weakened squad then went on a four-game rut. Just as their spirits seemed to be fading, their Greek talisman stepped up. Giannis Antetokounmpo fought relentlessly to put down the shorthanded Suns team, and his teammate followed suit. However, despite a historic performance, he wants the team to understand the urgency.

The final stretch before the postseason could be a real test for the Bucks—can they hold their ground without one of their key contributors? It’s a long shot, but another losing skid could put their sixth seed at serious risk.

Sensing the urgency, Giannis Antetokounmpo had to send a strong message to his squad. “I kept saying to my teammates, we’re fighting for our lives,” the Greek Freak said after their latest win.

Some teammates may have laughed it off, but Giannis wasn’t joking—he’s dead serious. How the Bucks perform in the playoffs could shape the future of the franchise. Damian Lillard’s hunger for a championship might push him to seek a change if things don’t go their way. And let’s not forget, Giannis himself has made it clear—his motivation to stay in Milwaukee hinges on their ability to compete at the highest level.

So in this stretch, it is indeed the fight for the Bucks’ lives. Do well and it reassures the franchise cornerstone of their future—if not, the team could look very different by next season.

To Giannis Antetokounmpo, winning dictates everything in his life. “I definitely needed a win. I think when you win you enjoy your sleep better, you enjoy your food better, you enjoy spending time with your kids and everything better so you enjoy interacting with your teammates more you know,” he said about the impact of winning.

But the Bucks have only solved one part of the puzzle so far.

Giannis Antetokounmpo urges one Bucks improvement

Milwaukee shot 68.9% from the field tonight. Read that again if it doesn’t set it. That’s the best mark that any team has reached in a single game this century. That’s how seamless the offense ran tonight. And it was because everybody was willing to pass the rock tonight. Four players had at least five assists, with Antetokounmpo leading the lines with 11 dimes.

“There’s going to be times that we make shots. There’s going to be times that we don’t make shots. But tonight was one of those days that shots just keep on keep on falling and they were, you know, they were wide open,” the Greek Freak said.

The victory gave him confidence that their offense is syncing well coping with the loss of Damian Lillard. Now it’s just about solving the other side of the floor. “We just got to stick together win or lose and keep on learning. And we got to go out there and compete every single day. Our offense has been better now, we just got to pick it up defensively,” he pointed out.

Tonight, the defense did a good job restricting the Suns to shoot just 47.8%. However, they had to deal with condensed firepower. The Suns were without Kevin Durant tonight, allowing the Bucks to focus solely on Devin Booker. He still got his way to 39 points. So there’s a large room to improve as a hardcore defense.

But with Giannis Antetokounmpo providing such great motivation, the Bucks are falling in line. Maybe they don’t look like a team that will win, yet if they show resilience and battle in the playoffs, the team will have glowing confidence once they get healthy.