Giannis Antetokounmpo: The night the legend was born

On Saturday night, Giannis Antetokounmpo became more than just another superstar.

Jusuf Nurkic was smart to foul Giannis Antetokounmpo as soon as he stripped Damian Lillard with 31 seconds to go in a one-point game. Giannis is unstoppable, especially in transition. Giannis at the free throw line is significantly less intimidating than Giannis galloping down court at full speed, eyes on the rim, ready to destroy.

Giannis isn’t an elite free throw shooter, but he’s not Andre Drummond. Saturday night, he took to the line, game up for grabs and clanked the first free throw off the rim. The crowd sighed.

The atmosphere became slightly more anxious. There was no chance the Bucks would return to defense with the lead, but whatever, Giannis just had to hit the next one to knot it up at 110.

Clank.

Giannis chased after the ball, but he couldn’t beat Lillard to his own miss. The Portland Trail Blazers called timeout, and everyone accepted that magical as Giannis was, he couldn’t quite do everything himself.

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Giannis was fuming on the bench. He punched a chair. He put his head between his legs and yelled at himself. He buried his head in a towel and bit it, seething with anger. He was appalled by his inability to come through for the Milwaukee Bucks.

The timeout ended and Giannis sprung up, still overcome with disgust. He didn’t mope or wallow in self-pity, though. He decided to win the game.

Evan Turner inbounded to Damian Lillard, who dumped the ball off to Jusuf Nurkic at the top of the key. Nurkic and Lillard ran a dribble hand-off and John Henson and Malcolm Brogdon doubled Lillard. Lillard maintained control and got the ball to C.J. McCollum.

Giannis was switched onto McCollum. Giannis is among the most versatile defenders in the NBA, but McCollum possesses an ungodly level of shiftiness. He’s a brutal cover for anyone.

McCollum got past Giannis. It looked like McCollum had him on his hip, like he was in total control of the play. Then Giannis happened.

He stuck that giant right arm of his into McCollum’s handle and poked the ball directly to Malcolm Brogdon:

He didn’t clank that one.

Giannis marched down the court and flashed the mean mug, the face that was so endearing when he entered the league, but has gotten progressively more terrifying each and every day.

The game wasn’t over yet, though. Giannis wasn’t done yet either.

Turner took to the same spot he had 19 seconds prior. The Blazers’ outlook had dimmed, but hope was far from lost with a hair over 11 seconds to go and both Lillard and McCollum on the court.

Déjà vu. Turner to Lillard again. Nurkic screened Brogdon. Brogdon and Henson tried to trap Lillard. Nurkic rolled and was open. The pass was on-the-money. Nurkic caught it in the dead center of the paint and went up strong.

Giannis decided to win the game:

In 30 seconds, Giannis failed himself, had a breakdown, regrouped, decided to win the game and did. He finished with a career-high 44 points, eight rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block, shooting 17-for-23 from the floor.

Great players impact winning. It’s a select few, though, who can simply decide to win. On Saturday night, Giannis showed that he is capable of doing just that.

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We’re witnessing something special in Milwaukee. This isn’t the emergence of a superstar; it’s the birth of a legend.