MILWAUKEE– There aren’t many firsts left for Giannis Antetokounmpo at this point in his career, but he found another to check off the list Saturday night in the Milwaukee Bucks’ 124-114 win over the Washington Wizards when he recorded the first 40-point triple. double his career.
A discussion in the press about Antetokounmpo’s impending feat nearly cursed him, as he missed three consecutive free throws in the final minutes while stuck at 39 points, but finally made one with 1:18 left. He finished with 42 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists on 15 of 24 from the field and 12 of 17 from the line.
This was the third triple-double of the season for Antetokounmpo, who is making an undeniable case to win his third MVP award. He has now recorded four 40-point games and leads the league in scoring with 32.9 points per game, which would be a career high. That adds up to 11.9 rebounds and 6.6 assists per night, the latter of which would also be the best mark of his career.
“I haven’t been here long enough, but this is by far the best moment for me because it’s not just about scoring, it’s everything,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “He blocks shots, rebounds the ball, passes the ball, starts the fast break. He and [Damian Lillard]His two-man game has been fantastic. He’s just doing a lot of things for us, and he’s doing it in the flow, it doesn’t seem forced. “It’s flowing and it’s great.”
Antetokounmpo said it was up to Rivers and the media to debate whether this is the best he’s played under his current coach. However, he did comment on the fact that he tied Michael Jordan on the all-time triple-double list with 35 points with eight.
“It’s a great compliment, but you have to keep moving forward, keep playing,” Antetokounmpo said. “I try not to pay attention to that. When I’m 40 years old somewhere in Hawaii or the Caribbean and I’m drinking a piña colada and arguing with my wife about how tough I was when I played, maybe I can say, ‘Yes.'” Michael Jordan and I did that,” I said in the same sentence. But now I try to stay focused and focus on the next game against Detroit.”
The Bucks will have a few days off before traveling to the Motor City to face the Pistons in a NBA Cup match on Tuesday night. That match will decide who wins Eastern Conference Group B and books a spot in the knockout round.
As much as the Bucks enjoy that accomplishment, the biggest one has been getting their season back on track. With the win over the Wizards, they extended their winning streak to six games and are now 7-1 in their last eight outings. Thanks to this good streak, they are back above .500 at 10-9 and up to sixth place in the East.
Their disastrous 2-8 start is now officially a thing of the past, and talk of successful trades has been replaced by how high they can climb the standings.
“We know how to win games,” Antetokounmpo said. “If it was the third game, the fourth game of the season, we probably would have lost that game, but now we know that it doesn’t matter if it looks pretty, if we’re playing well, we have to find ways to win the game.” . “It doesn’t matter, just win the game.
