Giannis Antetokounmpo is on a tear lately. His latest performance against the Toronto Raptors saw him put up a triple-double of 22 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists and two blocks while making all nine of his field goal attempts. The only blemish on his record was going 3 of 7 from the free throw line, but that didn’t make a difference as the Milwaukee Bucks took a 118-111 victory.
While none of us are amazed any longer at Antetokounmpo’s ability to take over a game on both ends of the floor, it’s worth noting the run that he’s put together recently. In the Bucks’ last 23 games, Antetokounmpo has averaged 30.2 points, 12 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game while shooting 57.1% from the field.
Oh, and the Bucks’ record is 21-2 during this run. Their current 51-20 record is the best in the NBA and they were the first team to clinch a playoff berth this season. This kind of dominance is reserved for the NBA’s best players, a small group whom Antetokounmpo certainly belongs in. I think he’s giving Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic a serious run for the MVP award this year, and if the Bucks finish with the best record, it would be hard to argue against the Greek Freak deserving to win the award.
That’s not to disrespect Jokic or Embiid, as the two centers are also putting on crazy seasons, especially the latter, who has led the Sixers to an eight-game winning streak and the second seed in the Eastern Conference.
Jokic, who has spent the majority of the season as the favorite to win the award, has unfortunately seen a reversal in fortunes. After leading the Western Conference for the majority of the season, the Nuggets have seen their lead at the first seed dwindle down to four games after going 5-5 in their last 10 games.
If anything, seeing the race for MVP tighten up is making it more enjoyable to watch the Bucks, Sixers and Nuggets play. I’m hoping all three frontrunners continue to put up monster performances as we close out the season.