Giannis Antetokounmpo’s ceiling as a lanky teenager on the Milwaukee Bucks was at best a role player. He had shown very little of his capabilities, and at that point, Anthony Bennett and Kelly Olynyk seemed like better choices.
Advertisement
Fast forward a few years and look at him now. The Greek Freak is truly a force of nature and not just a “run and dunk man,” as James Harden once claimed. In the last eight games, the two-time MVP has played like a man possessed, annihilating everyone and everything in front of him.
The last time they lost a game was a couple of weeks ago to the Cleveland Cavaliers. In that loss, Giannis did not feature. The last time the Bucks lost a game where he played was when Charlotte managed a shock win over them at home. That was over a month ago.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the MVP of the league, and his numbers over the last eight games show why: 38.9 PPG and 13.6 RPG, and 5.9 APG while shooting 60% FG. These are numbers that only Wilt Chamberlain averaged over a season.
What has changed in Giannis Antetokounmpo during this run?
The Greek Freak has turned it up a notch. He has flipped a switch that the league should be very fearful of. This season Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic have been competing for the MVP. And rightly so, given their superior overall statistics in terms of win share percentage and defensive/offensive rating. Jokic leads the league for the third straight time in these categories.
But if Antetokounmpo continues his run like in the last 10 games, the tide may change. Giannis has been lambasted as a lousy shooter, something he’s suddenly fixed. He’s become a reliable 3-point shooter, with his FG% from beyond the arc rivaling players like Klay Thompson.
The distance from which Giannis is taking his shots has come down, but he’s gotten more efficient at it. The game ultimately comes down to who makes the most baskets, and at this point, there is no one better than Giannis.
Will that make him the MVP of the league? The sample size is too small to determine that. The Joker from the Denver Nuggets still sits pretty at the top of the throne.
Nobody is coming close to his ability to turn the game on its head. Jokic may become the only other person to win three straight MVPs after Larry Bird. Giannis is also looking for his third.
Do the Fans think he’s the next Wilt Chamberlain or the next Bill Russell?
One key statistic people tend to overlook is the number of points scored per minute on the floor. Giannis rarely plays huge minutes, given how capable his team is. In those limited minutes, he’s been scoring an incredible 32 points per game. There has only been one instance this season where he’s played more than 40 minutes a game.
Despite having the best overall record, Giannis may end up coming in second because of Nikola Jokic’s importance to his team. More often than not, the Milwaukee Bucks, as a collective group, step up to win without their talisman. The Nuggets, on the other hand, do not do so much.
This claim of his being unable to shoot is a fallacy because the numbers speak for themselves. If his 60% FG wasn’t impressive enough, one look at his FG from 3 should be. Giannis has mastered the art of shooting, outperforming LeBron James.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the real king of LA, destroying them each time he’s faced them. Just in the last 12 games, he’s faced the LA teams three times, beating them on all three occasions.
MVP? We certainly think so.
