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Bucks' Cole Anthony gamble is officially a disaster 1 Nov 22, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Cole Anthony (50) drives against Detroit Pistons forward/center Isaiah Stewart (28) in the first half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images

Bucks’ Cole Anthony gamble is officially a disaster

Originally posted on WI Sports Heroics | By John Sbisa | Last updated Dec 2, 2025 5:58 PM ET

If the Milwaukee Bucks haven’t bailed on Cole Anthony altogether they’re awfully close. For one thing, they might not be able to, not if Kevin Porter Jr. misses more time after leaving Monday’s loss with back spasms. In that case, the team will need backup point guard minutes.

But the Anthony ship might have sailed already. Even before Porter’s return, Rivers finally began phasing Anthony out of the rotation. 11 minutes vs Miami, seven vs the Knicks. Then, once Porter came back, five minutes apiece against the Nets and Wizards.

There’s good reason for Anthony’s fall from favor. Bucks fans thought he might be back on the wagon after an 8-12, 16-point performance vs Portland. Then he followed it up by going 0-7 in the painful Miami loss. It seemed like an exciting proposition, and for a while – two games, four games? seven? – he gave them an offensive spark. Since then it’s been almost exclusively downhill. It’s time for the Bucks to label the Anthony free agency gamble a catastrophe.

Anthony gave Rivers, Bucks, little choice – enough is enough

Glance at his season stats and such a statement would seem to be far overblown. 7.6 PPG, 4.3 APG, shooting 42.5% from the field. Ok, so that isn’t great, but it’s not horrible.

Unfortunately, the Bucks haven’t gotten anything close to even that modest level of production for weeks now. In his first nine games of the season, Anthony averaged 11.2 PPG, 5.2 APG, 1.9 TOV, and shooting splits of 49.4/32.3/53.8.

In 12 games since, those figures are 4.8 PPG, 3.6 APG, and 2.3 TOV on splits of 34.7/12.5/57.1. It’s been at least as bad as the numbers suggest.

It’s not just the missed shots. It’s the reckless turnovers and a basic lack of floor awareness. Anthony has fought hard defensively but his small size makes him hard to accommodate on that end of the floor. If he isn’t giving them juice on offense, it’s hard to keep him on the floor.

Anthony hasn’t given Rivers a choice. As it stands now, that 0-7 game may have been the tipping point where the Bucks’ patience snapped. They could only stick with him for so long. If Porter is back and healthy, they won’t need to rely on Anthony as much. And even if back issues hold him out for another game or two, Rivers has shown that he’d rather not use a traditional point guard at all than give excess minutes to Anthony. Instead, the Bucks have given the reins to their wings and forwards.

Doc Rivers faces urgent point guard dilemma for the Bucks 5 Nov 10, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Cole Anthony (50) dribbles during the first quarter against the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

For example, Kyle Kuzma has seen an uptick in his playmaking volume, dishing out at least three assists in the last four games for an average of 4.5 per night. Even AJ Green, of all possible Bucks, has had something of a hot hand in that department. In that same time frame, Green has produced assist totals of eight, five, and five.

If that’s not an indictment of the team’s stance on Anthony, then nothing is.

This article first appeared on WI Sports Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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