Giannis Antetokounmpo and his Milwaukee Bucks are struggling to get things going this season, but that’s nothing to worry about now. The defending NBA champions defied all the odds last season, beating big rivals during the playoffs, proving their doubters wrong on the way to the championship.
Milwaukee has a 6-7 record this season, ranking 11th in the Eastern Conference standings. Mike Budenholzer has received criticism after the bad results, but this team knows things will be fine as long as they have Giannis on the roster.
The Greek Freak showed all his quality last season and even though things aren’t going well for him right now, his 2021 playoffs run is still memorable. For instance, Philadelphia 76ers Doc Rivers praised Giannis for overcoming the obstacles, fighting harder to meet his goals, ultimately becoming an NBA champion.
Via The Philadelphia Inquirer:
“I don’t like gushing over another guy, but what he did last year was amazing. … They lost back-to-back games in the playoffs, he struggled at the free-throw line. He goes on the road. He has 20,000 people counting [the seconds before his free throws] — hell, we were counting when we played him — and then he takes that to the last two games. He’s the most dominant player in the NBA. He makes free throws. He was defiant, almost.
That’s what I liked about him. He’s just defiant. “I know I’m not making free throws. I’m still going to keep driving. I’m still going to keep attacking. I’m going to still step up to the free-throw line and eventually I’m going to make them.’
”He may have been the only one who believed that at times. But the fact that he had a fan club of one was probably the reason he is who he is.”
Sixers and Bucks clashed on Tuesday, with Giannis dominating with 31 points and 16 rebounds. The Bucks got the win and the 2x NBA MVP went off, leading his squad to the 118-109 victory.
Some could think that Rivers’ words are shade for Ben Simmons. The Australian point guard has struggled with his shooting and is yet to show improvement in that department. Giannis, on the other hand, never backed down, even after missing clutch free throws.
That’s what makes Antetokounmpo a great player and Rivers knows those qualities and that mentality made him the champion he is right now.
