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He has done it. Giannis Antetokounmpo has solidified his legacy in the NBA as an all-time great. A 2x MVP, Finals MVP, DPOY (defensive player of the year), 5x All-Star, Most Improved Player, 3x All-NBA first team, 2x All-NBA Second Team, and finally a NBA champion. Giannis & co. have brought the city of Milwaukee their first title in 50 years. The last time the Bucks won an NBA Finals, Kareem Abdul-Jabaar was a second year big man from UCLA named Lew Alcindor. After having gone through the three tragic defeats in the eastern conference finals in the 1980s with Sidney Moncrief, losing in seven against Allen Iverson and the 76ers in the 2001 ECF, and then taking 18 years to finally get past the first round, Bucks fans can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Let’s rewind the tape to Giannis’ early years and reminisce on his incredible journey to becoming a, in my opinion, first-ballot hall of famer.

The Early Years (2013-2017)

For Giannis, it wasn’t always this easy for him in the league. He only started 23 games in his rookie year, averaging only 6.8 points per game. The talent was there, it was just up to him to adjust and perfect his game at the professional level. Just two years before his rookie year in the NBA, Giannis was a 16 year-old playing professional basketball for Filathlitikos, a second-division team in his native Greece. The Bucks infamously finished the year with 15 wins and 67 losses, the worst record in the NBA. Although on paper it was an unsuccessful year for Milwaukee, this was the first year that both Giannis and Khris Middleton would go on to play together. The Bucks made an incredible leap the next year after drafting Duke star Jabari Parker and managed to squeeze into the playoffs by three games into the 6th seed. They would go on to lose in the first round to Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls, but the future looked promising. Giannis took a big jump as well, starting 71 games and averaging 13 PPG & 7 RPG. The next year the Bucks would unfortunately take a step back, finishing 12th in the Eastern Conference. The positive side was that Giannis was still steadily improving. Gaining muscle and even growing two inches to 6’11”.

The Bucks took a huge step the next year as they drafted the eventual Rookie of the Year in Malcolm Brogdon. The team went from 12th in the East to 6th, however they once again fell in the first round, this time to the Raptors in 6 games. This year was highlighted by both Brogdon and Giannis winning awards, as Antetokounmpo took home the award for Most Improved Player, the first player in Bucks history to win the award. Giannis kept on improving himself as a player, but the results were sadly not improving team wise. As in the 2017/18 season, the Bucks lost in seven games to a young Celtics team in the first round. The future was looking bright for the Bucks organization. Whatever was going to happen next, Giannis Antetokounmpo was the centerpiece for this organization.

Back to Back MVP Awards (2018-2020)

This was the ultimate step in Giannis’ career. These are the years where everyone in the league stopped what they were doing and watched him ascend to greatness. In his first MVP year Giannis went ballistic, averaging an astonishing 27.7 PPG, 6 APG, & 12.5 RPG as he led the Bucks to the number one seed in the Eastern Conference. They would finally get over the hump of the first round, sweeping the Pistons with ease. They then avenged last years loss to the Celtics, by beating them in five games. This meant the only thing standing in front of Giannis and the NBA finals was a Toronto Raptors team led by former Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard. Milwaukee took the first two games in the brand new Fiserv Forum, going up 2-0 against the Raptors. This will be significant later in the story, make sure to remember it. However, after a 36 point performance by Kawhi Leonard in a 2OT win, the Raptors didn’t look back. They won the next three games and bounced the Bucks out of the playoffs. Even in heartbreaking defeat, Bucks fans had to be proud of their young team. They had a 24 year-old MVP and first team All-NBA player in Giannis and won 60 games to become the first seed.

Giannis turned it up even more the next year. He went on to average career-highs in both points (29.5) and rebounds (13.6) per game, earning him his second Most Valuable Player award. He became one of three players in this decade to win back-to-back MVPs, joining LeBron James and Stephen Curry. He also became one of three players to win both Defensive Player of the Year and MVP in the same year, joining the great Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon. The Bucks once again finished as the East’s first seed in the COVID-19 shortened season. They manhandled the Orlando Magic with ease in the first round in five games. However, the Bucks were met in the next round by the upstart Miami Heat. In the first game Jimmy Butler dropped 40 points to grab the win for the Heat and they didn’t stop there. The next game saw Jimmy Butler knock down two free throws at the end of regulation after being fouled by Giannis, securing another Heat victory. And in game three Butler once again went crazy, scoring 30 points in a 15-point Heat victory. To add insult to injury, in the first half of Game four Giannis rolled his ankle and was immediately ruled out. Nonetheless, Khris Middleton stepped up for the Bucks scoring 36 points and dishing out 8 assists in an overtime win. Even though Middleton was able to will the Bucks to victory in game four, it was too little too late as the Heat would cruise to a series-clinching win. Many pointed the finger at Giannis as the problem. Despite winning back-to-back MVPs the narrative was now, “Giannis can’t do it in the playoffs”. Going in to his eighth year in the league, he was yet to make an NBA Finals appearance. The Bucks front office had to make changes fast if they wanted to keep their young star in Milwaukee, and that’s exactly what they did.

Victory At Last (2021)

This was the Giannis revenge tour. It started with letting go of Eric Bledsoe by trading him for defensive stalwart Jrue Holiday. The move was met with a lot of criticism by NBA fans due to the fact that the Bucks also sent three first-round picks to New Orleans for Holiday. With Holiday inserted in to the starting five, Giannis would be paired with an elite-level defender for the first time in his career. With this season starting with no fans in the stadiums due to the coronavirus, it was quite the silent revenge tour. However, towards the end of the season the NBA started letting fans back in to the games. Milwaukee would finish the year as the third seed in the East only behind the super-team Brooklyn Nets and Joel Embiid & the 76ers. They claimed the Central Division title for the third straight year, finishing with a record of 46-26. And they had a long road ahead of them if they wanted to reach the top.

The Bucks were matched up with a familiar foe in the first round, the Miami Heat. Many were doubting the Bucks ability to execute in the playoffs, some even had the series going to all seven games. After a overtime buzzer-beater by Khris Middleton in game one, the Bucks didn’t look back. They avenged their 2020 defeat by sweeping the reigning Eastern Conference Champions, with a 34-point game two victory being the highlight of the series.

They faced the toughest challenge in the league in the next round, coming up against the Brooklyn Nets. After falling behind 2-0 in the series, the writing seemed to be on the wall once again for the Bucks. The Bucks would go on to take both games at home, taking advantage of the loss of Kyrie Irving in game four due to an ankle injury. In game six, Kevin Durant exploded for a 49 point triple-double as the Nets inched one step closer to eliminating Giannis and the Bucks. In Game six and seven, Antetokounmpo & Middleton turned it up to another level. In game six Giannis went for 30 points and 17 rebounds while Middleton scored 38 points along with 10 rebounds, tying the series at 3. This would lead to a pivotal game seven at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was Kevin Durant and James Harden versus Giannis & Khris Middleton for a spot in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Bucks had the lead late in the fourth quarter but Giannis lost handle of the ball, turning it over to the Nets. With the score at 109-107 in favor of Milwaukee, Kevin Durant got the ball at mid-court, backed down P.J. Tucker, did a spin move, and hit what looked like a fadeaway three-pointer to send the Nets to the Eastern Conference Finals. The only problem for the Nets was Durants’ size 16 shoe was on the three-point line, sending the game to overtime. In overtime, Middleton took over, scoring four of the Bucks six points. With him and Giannis both surpassing 50 minutes of game time Milwaukee edged out the Nets behind the play of their two stars, winning 115-111. Antetokounmpo finished with an incredible 40 points and 13 rebounds while Middleton finished with 23 points and 10 boards. In the next round, the Bucks were awaited by an upstart Atlanta Hawks who beat the number one seed Philadelphia 76ers in seven games.

Led by young star point guard Trae Young, the Hawks beat the Knicks and 76ers to get themselves to the conference finals. The series started with an incredible 48 point performance by Young in Milwaukee, stunning the Bucks by a score of 116-113. However, being that this was their second appearance in the conference finals with both Giannis and Middleton, the Bucks regrouped and beat the Hawks by an astounding 34 points, 125-91. In Game three, both Antetokounmpo and Middleton scored over 30 points as the Bucks took a 2-1 series lead in Atlanta. However, in game four it seemed that the world came crashing down on the Bucks. In the third quarter with the Bucks down 10, Giannis hyperextended his knee fighting for a ball with Hawks center Clint Capela. The injury looked serious and fans around the basketball community were saddened to see the two-time MVP’s playoff run seemingly come to an end. The Hawks would go on to win and tie the series at two, making it even harder to believe that the Bucks would be able to pull off the series win. However, Trae Young was also hurt after twisting his ankle on a referee’s leg in game three. So with both teams stars out, it seemed to be an even battle to see who could outlast the other. In game five an unexpected career-high 33-point performance by Brook Lopez would see the Bucks winning in Milwaukee by a score of 123-112. Trae Young would come back in Atlanta for game six, but he was clearly playing injured as the Bucks would eliminate the Hawks behind great performances by both Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton. The Bucks would be heading to their first NBA Finals since 1974, when they lost in seven games to the Boston Celtics.

The Bucks would be up against the second seeded Phoenix Suns in the Finals. The Suns also had an interesting path to the Finals. They started off by beating the reigning champion LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round, sweeping the MVP Nikola Jokic and his Nuggets in the second round, and then finally beating Paul George and the Clippers in six games to clinch their spot in the finals. They were led by the “point God” himself Chris Paul, sharpshooter Devin Booker, and rebound machine DeAndre Ayton. Giannis miraculously recovered in time for game one of the series, but he was clearly not 100% as the Bucks fell to the Suns 118-105. The next game would be even crazier as Giannis would go on to score 42 points and grab 12 boards in a losing effort as the Suns would win 118-108, making the series 2-0 in favor of Phoenix. Now remember in the last section how I said to remember the 2-0 lead that the Bucks gave up against Toronto in the 2019 ECF. Now is the time that Giannis finally avenged that loss. In this whole series it just seemed like there was a beast that was just awoken inside of Giannis and it wouldn’t stop until he was able to hold the Larry O’Brien trophy. In game three Giannis would go and drop a crazy stat line of 41 points, 13 rebounds, & 6 assists in a 120-100 Bucks win. This would be the second straight 40+ point game of the series for the Greek Freak, putting the Suns on high alert to try and not let their lead slip from them. Game four would be one of the best games of the year, going all the way down to the wire. Middleton was the star of the game, scoring 40 points, but the biggest play came late in the fourth quarter where Giannis denied Ayton a game tying alley-oop by blocking him at the rim. The Bucks would squeeze out a 109-103 victory, tying the series at two games apiece. In game five back in Phoenix, it all came down to the a possession late in the fourth quarter. The Bucks were leading 120-119 with 24 seconds left in the game. Devin Booker, who had 40 points at this point, was one on one against P.J. Tucker. Booker brought the ball up the court and drove towards the left side of the free-throw line. From his position at the three-point line Bucks guard Jrue Holiday turned around and stripped the ball from Booker, dribbled it all the way down to the opposite three-point line, and lobbed the ball up to Giannis for the game-clinching alley-oop. Chris Paul tried to even foul Giannis but the Greek Freak was unfazed as he slammed the ball with authority, breaking Suns fans hearts everywhere. The Bucks would hold on for the victory, edging them out 123-119, setting up a game six in Milwaukee with a chance to win the NBA Finals.

This game will get its own paragraph, deservedly so. The Bucks started fast, jumping out to a 29-13 point lead at the end of the first quarter. However, the Suns fought back diminishing the Bucks lead and ending the half up by five with the score of 47-42. In the second half, that beast inside Giannis that I mentioned earlier, kicked in to another gear. The Bucks would win their second championship in franchise history, beating the Suns 105-98 in front of their fans at the Fiserv Forum. Giannis would finish the game with a historic 50 points, 14 rebounds, and an incredible 5 blocks. He became the first player since Shaquille O’Neal in 2001 with 40 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 blocks in any playoff game. He became the 7th player in NBA history to score 50 or more points in an NBA Finals game. Giannis would also win Finals MVP, as the crowd inside and outside (70,000+ were outside Fiserv Forum) would cheer on their superstar.

I am a die-hard Boston Celtics fan until the day I die, but to see Giannis lift this trophy made me incredibly happy. I mean my name is Yanni Kouiroukidis, I am Greek & Moroccan. I’m proud of my heritage and seeing someone Greek take the NBA by storm has made me extremely proud. This title means so much to not only me, but to all of Greece and Nigeria too. And since Kostas won last year with the Los Angeles Lakers, now all three Antetokounmpo brothers in the NBA have a championship ring. Thanasis, Kostas, and Giannis have become the first trio of brothers to win NBA Championships. Alex, the NBA awaits you my guy. We are rooting for you.

Two time MVP
NBA Finals MVP
NBA CHAMPION
Defensive Player of the Year
5x All-Star
3x All-NBA First Team
2x All-NBA Second Team
3x First Team All-NBA Defense
1x Second Team All-NBA Defense
Most Improved Player Award
At only 26 years-old.

Giannis Antetokounmpo. First ballot HOF. Just a kid from Athens, Greece.

Forever In History.

This is YSN, until next time, signing out.