Giannis shares a photo of his garbage time dunk: My ability to express is limited, but you should understand what I mean.

On December 28th Beijing time, Bucks star Giannis posted on social media a photo of himself dunking during garbage time, captioning it: "My ability to express is limited, but you should understand what I mean."

Near the end of the fourth quarter, with the Bucks ahead 110-103, Giannis chose not to waste the remaining time but instead finished a windmill dunk on a transition play. Bulls players including Vucevic were very displeased by the provocative nature of the dunk, which led to a shoving incident between the two teams.

After the game, Giannis explained that the Bucks’ current record of 13 wins and 19 losses, placing them 11th in the Eastern Conference, influenced his decision to dunk.

“We’re currently 11th in the East, right? We need to quickly find our team’s playing style. If that means fighting harder and playing looser in the final moments, then so be it. We’re not defending champions, so why should we just run out the clock and talk about so-called respect and fair play? We’re fighting for a playoff spot right now!”

“I’m speaking from the heart—I’ve been in the league for 13 years. If we keep losing like this, brother, half the team might leave, and we won’t make the playoffs at all. I don’t care about the fluff; ultimately, I just want to stay healthy, get on the court, and help the team win. If doing this dunk can wake the team up and make everyone realize we’re fighting for our lives and have to go all out, then I’m happy to do it.”

Bulls center Vucevic told reporters after the game: “I guess Giannis got upset because he saw reports saying the Bulls weren’t interested in acquiring him via trade.”

Since the start of the 2025-26 season, Giannis’s long-term future has been closely watched. According to ESPN reporter Shams on December 4th, Giannis and his agent have begun discussions with the Bucks about whether it’s best for him to stay or seek another team. Chicago reporter Karnis later reported that Giannis and his team had proactively reached out to the Bulls to explore trade possibilities, but Chicago showed no interest. The Bulls are one of the teams the Bucks are eager to catch in the Eastern Conference standings, and following this loss, the Bulls’ record dropped to 15 wins and 16 losses.