Winning Game 7 will have a lasting impact on Giannis Antetokounmpo

Giannis Antetokounmpo accepted Kevin Durant’s challenge

While Kevin Durant may have taken umbrage with a certain sportscaster telling a story regarding his feelings towards Antetokounmpo, the fact that these two players received top billing cannot be ignored.

For his part, Durant was brilliant throughout the series. With pull-up jump-shots, 3-pointers and drives to the basket, Durant reminded the basketball world of how he won four scoring titles early in his career. In particular, his offensive outburst during an incredible comeback win in game 5 will be remembered for years to come. His 48 points in the last game of the series is the most ever scored in a game 7. To say he performed well would be a huge understatement.

However, at no point in the series did Giannis Antetokounmpo back down from KD. The fact is, a player of his caliber cannot be stopped, they can only be contained. While having more than one 40 point outburst in the same series may not look like containment, the numbers have to be put in context. One of the best ways to exhaust a superior offensive player is to force him to play defense. Giannis stayed aggressive on offense throughout the series and refused to settle for jump shots in games 6 and 7.  Forcing KD to play defense took away from his conditioning on the offensive end of the floor. By the end of overtime in game 7, it was clear Durant was out of gas.

Antetokounmpo did not verbally respond to the media’s depiction of this series as a battle between him and Durant. Instead, he let his game do the talking. Well said.