The Milwaukee Bucks are off to a blistering start to the season. They’re 10-3 through the first month and have won seven of their last 10, one of those being a big blowout win over the defending champion Warriors that announced their arrival as a legit contender in the East.
Much of that, of course, is thanks to Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s stellar play. Through the first 13 games, he’s averaging 25.4 points, 13 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and is a plus-9.6 when he’s on the court. He’s also doing it on efficient 55 percent shooting from the field overall, while terrorizing opponents on the defensive end with his astonishing length.
Giannis is a bona fide MVP candidate here in the early going. But don’t tell him that. Rather than let the praise go to his head, the Greek Freak is doing his best to remain humble, and part of that entails continually measuring himself against the NBA’s very best and maintaining his hunger for greatness.
Via Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports:
“You know me, I’m not going to say I’m not and I’m not going to say I am better than LeBron or K.D.,” Antetokounmpo told Yahoo Sports. “Because I want to feel like I always have somebody to chase. I want to feel like I can always get better. LeBron is one of the greatest guys to ever play. K.D. is one of the greatest scorers to ever play the game. They’ve been doing it for a long time. That’s what I want to do. I want to be in my 14th, 15th year in the league and still be doing what I’m doing today, and even better.”
You have to admire his mentality because there are clearly still aspects of his game that could use improvement. Giannis has yet to develop a reliable outside shot, but if and when he does, he’ll certainly cement his status as one of the top two or three players on the planet.
He’s practically there already even without a jumper, but Giannis’ strive for improvement and lack of complacency are both indicators that he has the right type of personality to reach elite status.
