Giannis Antetokounmpo also know as “Greek Freak” and “The Alphabet” deserves to be called the “Greek God” now. The 6-11 point forward has shown an increasingly unique skill-set given his length, athleticism, and defensive ability. It’s safe to say Milwaukee Bucks GM John Hammond lucked out in the 2013 NBA Draft after Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban (who was high on Giannis) decided to trade his 13th overall pick to Boston for future second rounders. Given the weak prospects in the 2013 Draft, Giannis ended up being selected after guys like Anthony Bennett (#1ovr), Alex Len (#5ovr), and Michael Carter-Williams (#11ovr). Since being drafted (#15ovr) at 19 years of age, Giannis has shown vast improvement each year in multiple categories such as: FG%, FT%, PTS, REB, AST, STL, and BLK. However, the Freak has not only shown development on paper but also has received praise from multiple past and present superstars in the league, two of which have been Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. Last year after Giannis dropped a Triple-Double racking up 27 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists against the Lakers in Kobe’s last game in Milwaukee, Kobe had some valuable advice to say in his press conference after:

“I said listen man, it’s just a choice you’re going to have to make. If you want to be that great player, then you’re going to have to make certain sacrifices and go after it.” Bryant said. “He has the potential to do it. He has the physical tools, the intelligence. Now it’s just a matter of believing in himself and going after it. He has the talent to be a great player.”

It seems as though Giannis really let those prized words from Kobe sink in. In this current 2016-2017 season, The Greek Freak has been poised to become an NBA All-Star for the first time in his career. Now, at only 22 years of age, he is putting up an average of 35.5 minutes played, 22.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 2.1 steals, and 2.1 blocks while turning the ball over 3.5 times with a usage rate of 28.9% in this first 17 games of this season.

One of these 17 games included a Milwaukee blow out on Tuesday, November 29th against the 2016 NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers led by Lebron James. Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with a career high of 34 points along with 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals and 2 blocks making him 3 blocks short of a 5×5 statline. Given this hefty stat line, Giannis has outscored LeBron James 3 of the last 4 times they have faced off against each other, thus making King James well aware of the Greek natives potential. During the shoot-around before the game on Tuesday Lebron had something to say about Giannis:

“He’s learning the game more and more. He’s doing a great job of getting his teammates involved, he’s helping his team win.”

Also, Bucks Head Coach Jason Kidd spoke highly of Antetokounmpo saying “We have special players that we come across. Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Jordan. And Giannis is one of those rare players.”

Our top priority as Bucks fans should be to show Greek Freak some love and get him a much deserved Eastern Conference All-Star selection. If Giannis gets enough help from his home country Greece like Kristaps Porzingis did with Latavia, he will become the first Bucks player to appear in the All-Star game since Michael Redd (age 24) in the 2003-2004 season. Giannis and the Bucks young core are a clear red flag to other teams in the NBA and are a step in the right direction towards owning the leagues future. This is only the beginning of building something great in Milwaukee.

*Deer Noise*

-JoeMah