The 2019-20 NBA season did not end the way Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks wanted, but on an individual level, this campaign will end the same as the last for the reigning league MVP. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Antetokounmpo has been named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for the second year in a row, adding to his personal trophy case for the second time this year — the Greek Freak was also named the league’s Defensive Player of the Year.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo has won his second consecutive MVP award, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 18, 2020
Per Marc Stein of the New York Times, the official announcement is coming a little later this afternoon, but even before news of Antetokounmpo’s second consecutive coronation became official, it was hard to see anyone beating him for this award. For how good LeBron James was during the 2019-20 season, Antetokounmpo was flat-out dominant, averaging career-best marks in scoring (29.5 a game) and rebounding (13.6 a night) while pitching in 5.6 assists, a steal, and a block per game. The cut-off for MVP voting was before the NBA’s COVID-19 hiatus in March, and in that time, Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to a league-best 53-12 record.
With the win, Antetokounmpo becomes the 12th player to win consecutive MVP awards, and the first since Steph Curry went back-to-back in the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons. It is unclear whether Antetokounmpo won this award unanimously, something that only Curry has accomplished.
