Giannis Anatetokounmpo is an absolutely unstoppable force on the basketball court. As a 6x All-Star, 2x MVP, and NBA Champion he has more than proved himself in the league.
Unfortunately, his greatness does not make him immune from the wrath of NBA Twitter.
During Saturday night’s skills challenge, Giannis and his brothers formed a three-man crew that looked to pass a test of passing, dribbling, and shooting. The trio ended up doing so bad (they were the first team eliminated) that they got clowned by fans on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1495206904166973443https://twitter.com/SASBurnerAcct/status/1495203836939673603
The Antetokounmpo brothers in round one of the Skills Challenge pic.twitter.com/XearI4Ltam
— ry (@NinjaBands) February 20, 2022
https://twitter.com/Kofie/status/1495206190715846658https://twitter.com/Kofie/status/1495206963025616898
Nahh no offence but why is Giannis doing a skill challenge 😂
— Stella Ivy (@stellaivy_) February 20, 2022
Bro NBA setting Giannis up for failure putting him in a skills challenge 🤣
— adrian (@itsadrizzle) February 20, 2022
https://twitter.com/eren35ttt/status/1495210098574217216
Skills challenge really going to not only expose Giannis but his whole family 💀
— KDsMyGoat (@KDsMyGoat) February 20, 2022
James Harden watching Giannis in a skills challenge pic.twitter.com/iPweZ0XSOP
— Mac (@crownme_mac) February 20, 2022
Bro the NBA should be ashame for choosing the Giannis family for the Skill challenge. They all are certified non bucket getters lmfao
— 4TLOTG Podcast (@4TLOTGPod) February 20, 2022
The Harden reference some fans Tweeted dates back a few years now. Back in 2020, Harden threw some shade at the Greek Freak by saying his game requires “no skill.”
“I wish I could just be 7 feet and run and dunk. That takes no skill at all,” he told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols. “I actually have to learn how to play basketball and have skill. I’ll take that any day.”
While it might be a stretch to say Giannis’ game requires no skill at all, a case can be made that a guy like Harden and others (who do not have the luxury of being Giannis’ size) have to develop more skills to be successful in the game.
The skills challenge, at least to some, illuminates Harden’s point. Regardless, the blame cannot fall all on Giannis.
The Antetokounmpo brothers are among the NBA’s most well-known and beloved families. They clearly have some talent and had some fun on Saturday, but it’s no surprise that Alex and Thanasis had some trouble carrying their weight.
As for Antetokounmpo, he has never been known as a shooter, but he finds other ways to dominate the game. He knows how to use his body and size to get easy shots around the rim.
Sadly, he can’t really use those to his advantage during the skills challenge.
