NBA MVP Ladder 3.0 all about respecting elders; LeBron James remains on top
By Phil Watson
Previous: . giannis antetokounmpo. 2. player. 89. .
While the Milwaukee Bucks won 12 of their last 14 games to maintain the best record in the NBA, defending MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo played in just 12 of them while nursing a sore back, but put up some ridiculous numbers for the minutes that he did play.
How ridiculous? Let’s try 26.1 points, 13.1 rebounds and 5.9 assists in 29.5 minutes per game. Are you kidding? He shot 51.9 percent overall over that stretch and hit 28.8 percent on 4.9 3-point attempts per game. Free throws continued to be an Achilles’ heel as well, as Antetokounmpo took 9.2 attempts a night, but only converted 65.5 percent of them.
Milwaukee was 10-2 in the games Antetokounmpo played and on the season, the Bucks are 3-0 when the Greek Freak is out of the lineup — a testament to the team’s depth. Is it easier to win with Antetokounmpo available? Of course it is. But Milwaukee is showing they are more than just a one-man band.
On the season, Antetokounmpo is averaging 30.1 points, 12.9 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks in 30.8 minutes per game, shooting .552/.325/.615, with 5.1 deep balls and 10.4 free throw attempts per night. While his scoring and rebounding are at career-high levels, his free throw percentage is a career-low… by a significant amount. He shot 68.3 percent as a rookie.