Giannis Antetokounmpo recently missed three-straight games due to right-hand soreness before returning to the court for the game against the Sacramento Kings. While the 7x NBA All-Star seems to be healing steadily, his hand injury still remains a major concern with the playoffs set to take place in less than a month’s time. Amidst all that, the Milwaukee Bucks superstar spared a few mins for a brief interview and took a dive into the one topic that has been bugging the NBA world lately.
The Milwaukee Bucks are currently in one of their best seasons as they sit proudly on the top as the No. 1 contending team. Not only are the Bucks leading the Eastern Conference rankings but they have also surpassed the Denver Nuggets to become the team with the best NBA record.
Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, or Giannis Antetokounmpo?
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Fans are well aware that Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic is the frontrunner in the MVP race, thus increasing his chances of making history. If things go in favor of the Serbian basketball star, then he will soon become the third player in the league’s history to win three-straight MVP awards. But what about Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo? While Jokic has been doing fairly well this season with an average of 24.8 points, his stats fall short of the average scored by Embiid and Antetokounmpo.
The Philadelphia 76ers player is ‘leading the pack’ at the moment with 33.5 points and 10.2 rebounds this season. Whereas, Antetokounmpo is averaging 31.4 points and 11,9 rebounds with 54.2 percent shooting from the field. Add in the fact that the Bucks currently have the best record, it comes as a surprise that the Greek Freak is not the leading choice for the award.
To get a little professional insight on the MVP debate, The Athletic’s Sam Amick decided to get the Bucks star’s opinion on the matter shortly after his team was defeated by the Golden State Warriors.
Giannis Antetokounmpo gives his thoughts on the MVP debate
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Amick caught up to the 2021 NBA champion shortly after the Bucks’ disappointing defeat against the Warriors. It was the second consecutive game Antetokounmpo had sat out due to his injury. As the conversation ensued, Amick asked for his thoughts on the criteria for choosing an MVP and Antetokounmpo had a rather interesting answer in handy.
He said, “Like, I believe ? and I know ? that people are dominating. So what is the MVP? Is it the guy who scores the most points? Is it the guy who?s the most efficient? Is it the guy who is the most dominant? Is it the guy who is the most valuable? Sometimes, the best player isn?t the most valuable player on the team. Like, I feel like (Bucks center) Brook (Lopez) is such a valuable player for our team. Like (the MVP criteria) just f??- ? sorry for my language ? it just changes. As I said again, I can?t control that. I can control only how I prepare for the game and try to be ready for the game.”
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What do you think of the NBA superstar’s reply? Do you think there is someone more deserving than Jokic? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!