Giannis Antetokounmpo is the NBA’s trendiest MVP candidate, and he’s earned that label. You can’t overstate his athleticism. You can’t overstate his skill. You can’t overstate his fun personality. He has it all, and a lot of NBA insiders are predicting that this is the year he puts it all together.
In fact, Kevin Durant gave Antetokounmpo the biggest compliment you can give an NBA player in a Q&A session on his YouTube channel earlier this month when he said the Greek Freak could end up being the best to ever do it. Yeah, that’s a pretty high ceiling.
We’re less than a week into the NBA season, and Antetokounmpo already has a handful of highlights that make you shake your head in wonderment. The NBA is taking notice, too, as Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks got the marquee match-up against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on ESPN Friday night. The Greek Freak vs. King James did not disappoint. Antetokounmpo put up monster numbers, James put up monster numbers, and the two traded highlight bucket after highlight bucket all night.
James got the last laugh, though. In classic LeBron James fashion, he stuck with Antetokounmpo in transition and recovered in time to block Antetokounmpo’s layup attempt off the backboard. James had to remind Antetokounmpo who the NBA’s best wing was.
Antetokounmpo has hit that exact step-through move on so many defenders, but LeBron is one of the few NBA players who can match his explosion and athleticism. Antetokounmpo shouldn’t feel too bad, though. James does this to everyone.
