The leading 2019/20 MVP candidate, Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, suffered a minor left knee joint capsule sprain in Friday’s 113-103 loss to the Lakers, per a team press release (hat tip to Malika Andrews of ESPN).
Andrews relays that the Greek Freak will not be available for at least the final two contests of the Bucks’ current road trip, bouts against the bottom-feeding Suns and the Western Conference’s No. 3 seed, the Nuggets.
Antetokounmpo may miss more time than just the next two games. The Bucks’ next home game is Thursday, when they host the East’s No. 3 seeded Celtics. The Bucks will have an update on Giannis’ availability for what could be a pivotal intra-conference contest within the week.
The Bucks are the No. 1 seed in the East with an impressive 53-10 record. They are 8.5 games clear of the No. 2 seed, the 44-18 Raptors. A terrific two-way player, Antetokounmpo’s stellar individual season has been a huge part of that equation: in 57 games, he is averaging 29.6 PPG, 13.7 RPG, and 5.8 APG during just 30.9 MPG.
It’s not like I am a Suns fan, but come on they have a better record than 9 teams. Bottom feeding? Harsh.
Wear and tear…emphasis on the wear.
I guess he can’t dunk for a while.
Come on Giannis get better soon the league ain’t the same without the MVP on it!
Lebron is the mvp.. bucks are fools gold.. they play the majority of there games against inferior eastern conference teams.. lakers have the most wins vs over 500 teams bucks 16-9 and lakers 20-11.. lakers have best road record.. mvp is most valuable player.. I’d say lebron is more valuable to lakers success.. than Giannis..
Coming in hot, no?
I believe Lebron has the edge because he has developed a streaky 3 point shot.
The bucks have a better team overall though. That team has scary depth.
I actually thought they had a good team until I really watched them vs lakers.. Giannis is great.. however middleton seems to disappear and so does Bledsoe.. Giannis main advantage is he’s big so he can drive to lane.. his jumpshot is flat.. his game isn’t close to being done.. but he needs to work.. harden was partially right about him not needing skill to dunk at 7 feet.. in first meeting in Milwaukee between lakers, hill hit like 7 3 pointers.. they won by 8 but that was the last game on long road trip for lakers.. lakers weren’t rebounding or hitting 3’s but came back from 23 down..with Giannis, they’ve lost 2 of last 3.. 3 of 4 after tonight with 2 in a row with Denver up next..
Can’t imagine teams losing when their star is hurt. It’s not like the Lakers went 9-18 without LeBron last year.
Yeah if Middleton is being middling and Bledsoe is going to disappear then they have no shot. They need to be the two way players they are paid as for them to win. The bucks have the better personal man for man but can they execute when it matters? Idk, but when hill is at the bottom end of your bench, that team is deep. Completely agree with GA analysis. Once those knees start feeling the constant drives to the basket from a 7 footer, he’s going to plummet. He’s Durant that handles the ball but can’t shoot. In a few years buck fans are going to be decimated.
Giannis hasn’t even peaked yet. He should age better than a player like Lebron, and Lebron isn’t looking like he’s lost much off of his game. I wouldn’t put money on Giannis “plummeting “.
Why would he age better than Lebron? Lebron has a much more durable physique and has been an outlier when it comes to health.
7 foot lanky players have a history of not lasting very long because of their knees and feet.
He’ll never peak if he doesn’t learn how to shoot.
I would a few years from now. He better win a chip fast.
True, Giannis has had no impact on the Lakers success.
But he will in 2 years when he joins kostas
IMO the race for MVP is right now:
1) Giannis
2) Harden
3) AD
4) KAT (what he has managed to play)
5) Luka
6) LBJ
KAT is not even in the conversation. He had, what, a 3 month period where he didn’t participate in a win due to losing streaks and injury.
This just shows your basketball knowledge.. lebron is the mvp.. it’s the most valuable player.. you think Giannis is more valuable to bucks than lebron to lakers.. bucks at a +4 when Giannis isn’t playing.. lakers are a minus -2.6.. .. mvp is lebron.. you take lebron off lakers, they might not make playoffs. You take Giannis off bucks, they still make playoffs in East.
So Lebron wins because he plays for a crappier team? That’s not how it works.
Crappier team? What do you think most valuable player means.. the most valuable player.. lebron is the most valuable player to his team.. the lakers are better when he’s on the floor by a lot.. bucks Would still make playoffs and have a positive net rating when Giannis isn’t playing.. lakers have a minus net rating when lebron sits.. bucks lost in Denver sitting all there starters by 14.. #3 team in western conference.. that’s pretty good.. lebron sat out a game vs Denver and they lost by over 20 at home.. see the difference..
KAT is not even in the conversation. He had, what, a 3 month period where he didn’t participate in a win due to losing streaks and injury.