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    • Best version of Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo showed up against Pistons
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    Best version of Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo showed up against Pistons

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    Giannis Antetokounmpo was in warrior mode on Wednesday night.

    Suddenly and unexpectedly, half of his squad went down – with Damian Lillard and Bobby Portis sitting with new injuries alongside Khris Middleton with old injuries – and playing for the second time in two days on an infamous NBA running back, it was immediately apparent Antetokounmpo said if he didn’t want to feel backed into a corner, he had to be the engine that would drive everything for the struggling Milwaukee Bucks.

    It also became clear what the Detroit Pistons were going to try. Pushing and shoving and struggling.

    But instead of containing the Greek Freak, something primal simply awoke in the nearly 30-year-old Antetokounmpo, who just four days earlier was called “a kid” by Boston’s Jaylen Brown for faking a high-five and that just days before, he was in stern dad mode as he told a gaping, sighing reporter that he could leave.

    No, this version of Giannis against the Pistons was something we had seen in his formative years, his MVP quest years and in the hot Milwaukee summer of 2021 – the young and hungry Giannis, the sparring Giannis, the nine lives Giannis.

    Antetokounmpo scored 59 points in the 127-120 win against Detroit and his performance at the Fiserv Forum was legendary, even by his extraordinary standards. He had 22 of Milwaukee’s 24 points in the first quarter. He had run and dunked. Mid-range recordings. A three, just for fun. A litany of dagger free throws. He was a threat to the defense and confused ball handlers. He ran the offense and took over at point guard for Lillard. He deliberately placed screens. He led teammates.

    More: Pistons’ Isaiah Stewart ejected for Flagrant 2 on Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo: ‘Not a basketball game’

    Detroit continued to try to get Antetokounmpo out of position, using most of their 21 fouls on him, and he responded with a counterplay of sorts, never shying away from the bruises.

    “Mike Tyson,” Antetokounmpo said. “I was watching this documentary yesterday with Mike Tyson and Jake Paul – they have a boxing match in a few days – and he said some guys are manufactured killers. And he’s a born killer.

    “And I just feel the same way, like I’ve been in that position many times in my life.”

    Antetokounmpo responded perfectly to the Pistons push and pull

    Detroit has a history of literally playing Antetokounmpo hard — at least going back to the 2019 playoffs — and continuing to roll players to him. Antetokounmpo occasionally got an eyeful in the second quarter. He hit the deck a few times in 43 minutes of play. While driving hard to the hoop and being defended by Cade Cunningham, he fell once on his right knee — the knee with right patella tendinopathy — and grimaced in pain.

    But the momentum changed dramatically when Antetokounmpo looked to make a close shot late in the third quarter and Detroit center Isaiah Stewart used both hands to pull on the back of Antetokounmpo’s jersey to send the dunk or layup into the lane. defend. The two had been battling for court real estate all night, but at this point Detroit was clinging to a 79-71 lead that was fading as the Bucks recovered from an 18-point deficit.

    Stewart went way too far and pulled a rising Giannis to the ground, where he fell to his side. With fans seething, Antetokounmpo stood up and calmly walked away as the officials reviewed the play and ejected Stewart for a flagrant foul.

    “I have two older brothers who push me to the ground and tackle me hard, especially Thanasis,” Antetokounmpo said. “I’ve been hit so many times, so I’m not that impressed anymore. I don’t really care. All I could think about is just getting up and trying to make two free throws.

    “At the same time, it is a dangerous game. That’s not a basketball game, and I think the referee did a great job making the right call. I couldn’t hear what it was, but I know he was sent away.

    “But at the end of the day, when you play against guys like (Jalen) Duren and Stewart and guys who are physical and tough, you have to expect that. When I came to the game, I knew it was going to be difficult for me to determine my angles and make plays.”

    Antetokounmpo calmly sank both free throws. He hit 16 free throws on 17 attempts, but he never turned on Stewart or the Pistons. He remained calm. That’s important because he did that a year ago and got kicked out of a game himself after watching with Stewart. This time, with the Bucks desperate to win basketball (they are now 4-8 after winning back-to-back games for the first time), Antetokounmpo was able to put all his energy into just hooping.

    “Maybe, if this happens in a week, I might lose it. I’m human,” Antetokounmpo said. “At the same time, all I could worry about was getting back into the game. And I was in pain, so I couldn’t really get rid of my emotion. I just tried to – you know, my glute was numb, so I just tried to get rid of it to walk and go to the bench, wait for the call and I knew I was going to shoot two free throws.

    This was Antetokounmpo’s second-highest scoring game of his career. His 21 made field goals matched his career high. With his three blocks and two steals, he became the first player in the NBA to record at least 50 points, ten rebounds, three blocks and two steals since blocks and steals became official statistics in 1973-74.

    He also survived a nail-biting foul he committed on Ron Holland II at the end of regulation. Defending a late Dutch shot, Antetokounmpo was whistled for his only foul of the entire match. But Holland, only 19, fell short on both free throws, sending the game into overtime, where Antetokounmpo thoroughly dominated.

    Antetokounmpo is still figuring things out in his twelfth season

    Immediately after the game, the weekday crowd that stayed until 10 p.m. showered Antetokounmpo with MVP chants as he gave an on-court interview. He had to pause for a moment as the emotions finally surfaced.

    About an hour later, he reflected on his performance of the week so far: a terrible loss to Boston, a win against Toronto and this win against Detroit. Even now, in his 12th NBA season, he is learning and growing as a player.

    “I think the thing is up to me, and I always struggle with this, when to be aggressive or when not to be,” Antetokounmpo said.

    “In the Boston game I was extremely aggressive, trying to go downhill, get my spots. That didn’t work very well. When I come out with the Toronto game, you literally have to make a choice. To be able to do that do When you win a game, you have to get everyone involved. Shot 60 3s – guys were there. We didn’t make as many as I thought, but we won the game, okay?

    “Coming into this game, I realized I had to be aggressive… try to get my spot, try to set the tone for everyone else; they have to guard me tonight. And when I did that, it didn’t work. We were 15, 18 behind.

    “Coming out of the second half, I have to … still keep my aggressiveness, but keep moving the ball. … As a leader, the guy who is very competitive, do you keep going in with that energy, that mentality? … I had to switch gears again in the fourth quarter, I had to be more aggressive, go downhill more, get to my spots.

    Sometimes you have to be able to do both. Sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself for the team. Sometimes you have to be extremely aggressive for the team.

    “Sometimes being unselfish can be selfish; sometimes your teammates want you to be aggressive. But at the end of the day, just like in a game, you have to be able to do both. You have to be able to read the game.” Read the energy, read your teammate and be able to do both, be aggressive and sometimes you have to move the ball.”

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