The one persistent criticism retired NBA stars harp on is the lack of physicality in today’s game. Their frustration about referees being quick to blow their whistles and players exploiting it with flopping is common. Most argue that stars today are too used to being bailed about by officials and wouldn’t survive the toughness of their era. However, Alonzo Mourning believes Giannis Antetokounmpo is an exception to that norm.
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On the latest episode of the Big Podcast with Shaq, the Heat icon and his former teammate Shaquille O’Neal pondered which active superstars could acclimatize and thrive in the 1990s. The latter claimed reigning MVP Nikola Jokic would have no issues adjusting to the physicality. However, Mourning had a different view. He said,
“Giannis [could thrive in the 90s]. I think just how hard he goes… I think he still takes a beating, though… [But] I think Giannis man… He’s cut up like I was.”
However, he claimed the Bucks superstar would experience a culture shock if he time-traveled back to the 1990s and played in the NBA. He noted that centers and forwards back then not only played physical defense but showed no remorse and tried to send a message to their opponents. Mourning added,
“I’ll tell you what. Terry Cummings, [Charles Oakley], Anthony Mason… You let them boys lay wood on you, they take you out of the air… We don’t have that no more… The guys in this era have not felt physicality. [They wouldn’t know] until they felt those guys.”
Antetokounmpo is arguably the only star in the league today who plays with brute force on both ends of the floor. He is reminiscent of a bygone era when big men were expected to use their towering presence to dominate in the paint and not stand on the three-point line and play as a ‘stretch 5.’
O’Neal may have picked Jokic ahead of Antetokounmpo and doubted whether the Greek Freak would dominate in the 1990s, but it was likely him being a contrarian for the sake of it. He’s admitted in the past that he enjoyed the Bucks superstar’s old-school play style and even gave him the ultimate compliment.
When Shaq gave his Superman cloak to Giannis
Antetokounmpo cemented his legacy as the greatest player in Bucks history after leading the franchise to the NBA title in 2021, its first since 1971. His 50-point performance in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Suns is arguably the greatest ever in the championship series, and it even prompted O’Neal to anoint him as the league’s new Superman.
He congratulated the two-time MVP and the Bucks on Instagram with a post and captioned it,
“Congratulations Giannis! Thanks for bringing old-school bully basketball back. It’s only one Superman now and that’s you. [Damn], you was dominating. Wow.”
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It’s impossible to claim that Antetokounmpo would be as dominant in the 1990s as he is today. However, there’s reason to believe that he’d be among the best players in the league and would have no issues acclimatizing to the league’s physicality.
