The 2021 NBA championship and Finals MVP has put Giannis Antentokounmpo in the top 10 power forwards of all time.
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The Greek Freak achieved the biggest milestone of his career this year. The Milwaukee Bucks are 2021 NBA champions, with Giannis being crowned Finals MVP.
The Milwaukee Bucks had shattered an umpteen no of records with his performances in the 2021 NBA Finals. The 2x league MVP averaged 35.2 PPG, 13.2 RPG, 5.0 APG, 1.2 SPG, and 1.8 BPG on a 61.8% shooting from the field.
Giannis has joined the exclusive club of the top 10 power forwards with his performances in the 2021 NBA Finals. It would not be wrong to talk about Giannis in the same breath as Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, and Tim Duncan.
“If Giannis goes and wins this championship and wins Finals MVP, I will bow down to Giannis. I will call Giannis a top 10 power forward, knocking on the door of a top 5 power forward all-time.”
– Kendrick Perkins
(via @GetUpESPN) pic.twitter.com/10BcLMe21W
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) July 20, 2021
Giannis has also joined the likes of Michael Jordan and LeBron James in having some of the best Finals performances in league history.
Giannis Antentokounmpo is a generational player
The 15th pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, Giannis was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks. The Milwaukee superstar made his NBA debut at the age of 18. In his rookie year, he averaged 6.8 PPG on a 41.4% shooting from the field.
However, it was 2017 when Giannis burst into the limelight. At the age of 22, he became the youngest player in Bucks’ franchise history to be selected as an All-Star.
In the 2016-17 season, he became the first player in history to finish in the top 20 in each of the 5 major aspects of the game, which include points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. Giannis was the 2017 most improved player as well.
Back-to-back MVPs
Giannis took the Milwaukee franchise to new heights during the 2018-19 season. The superstar won his first-ever MVP award that year, with the Bucks being the top seed in the NBA, having an impressive 60-wins.
The next consecutive season saw Giannis achieve an exceptional feat winning the MVP and DPOY in the same year. Thus, only being the third player to do so in the same year after Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon.
However, Giannis’ biggest criticism until then was his inability to perform during the playoffs. The 5x All-Star was often accused of not being able to replicate his regular-season success come playoff time.
2021 NBA champion and Finals MVP
The Milwaukee superstar silenced all his critics with his performances in the 2021 playoffs averaging over 30 PPG on a 56.9% shooting from the field.
The Greek Freak had 3 games in the Finals with at least 40-points, including dropping 50-points in Game Seven.
Giannis scored 47.6% of the Bucks’ points tonight.
That is the 4th-highest in a Finals game in the shot-clock era.
The only players with a higher percentage during that span?
Michael Jordan and Elgin Baylor. pic.twitter.com/cuRwPCxXGo
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 21, 2021
Giannis is the first player with 40 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 blocks in ANY playoff game since Shaq in 2001. pic.twitter.com/rJdFAgkKy1
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 21, 2021
The 26-year old already has a Hall of Fame resume. One of the most dominant players in the paint since Shaquille O’ Neal.
Giannis seems to have brought the big men era back in the NBA, which is otherwise dominated by guards.
