Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo is making an MVP push at the perfect time

By | March 4, 2022
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Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks past the Bulls on Friday night and with the win, and helped Milwaukee leapfrog Chicago for the third seed in the East in the process.

Now, with under 20 games remaining in the regular season, the Bucks are within three games of the East’s top seed.

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Antetokounmpo got the best of fellow MVP candidate DeMar DeRozan in Chicago, finishing the 118-112 win with 34 points (on 12-of-22 shooting), 16 rebounds and five assists, continuing a recent stretch of form that has seen Milwaukee surge at the right time of the season.

As a result, the two-time MVP has catapulted back into the MVP conversation. 

While Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic have (rightly) garnered most of the headlines in that regard this season, Antetokounmpo has been going about his business without much fanfare. 

Over his last 15 games, Antetokounmpo is averaging 31.7 points on 57.8 percent shooting, 12.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists. 

His overall numbers aren’t quite to the level of his 2019-20 season, but this has been the best year of Giannis’ career. 

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The Bucks are gaining momentum and playing with a championship swagger again. After going just 6-6 in their previous 12, they have now won three consecutive games for the first time since early February. 

What’s of more importance to Milwaukee is the health of their Big Three.

The win over the Bulls takes the team’s record to 27-8 when Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton have all played, and 6-0 in games where the three have combined to score 79 points or more. 

It’s telling that the trio has only played just over half of Milwaukee’s games together, highlighting how much the team has relied on Antetokounmpo to carry the load. 

The battle at the top of the East is tighter than in recent memory, and the Bucks will have to remain at the top of their game to fend the challengers off.

If Antetokounmpo continues to play the way he has over the past 15 games, that challenge might be easier to meet. 

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