"I'm nice like that": Giannis Antetokounmpo puts in work at Bucks practice as he nails 3 straight shots
Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks are having a little fun at practice. The Bucks are having an up-and-down season but they remain loose and confident. Antetokounmpo and his teammates will be in Brooklyn on Monday to face the Nets. They're coming off a hard-fought 110-105 win at home against the New York Knicks and are looking for their first back-to-back wins of the season.
During practice, the “Greek Freak” hit three consecutive shots. The first was a layup that had Robin Lopez biting on a fake. He then rose over a defender for a nifty fadeaway jump shot. He capped it off his electric sequence with a shot from deep.
All the while, he kept repeating:
“I’m nice. I’m nice like that!”
Giannis Antetokounmpo is averaging 24.0 points in five games. Last season, he averaged 31.1 PPG. The drop in scoring was expected due to the arrival of former Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard. Antetokounmpo is putting up 15.4 shots per game, the least since the 2016-17 season when he made his first All-Star team. Fortunately, he has remained effective, hitting 54.5% of his shots.
The Bucks’ addition of Lillard hasn’t been as seamless as expected. They’ve been alternating wins and losses in each of their five games. “Dame Time” has had a couple of explosive games, but he’s still finding his way around his new teammates.
Milwaukee’s offense is 12th in the NBA in offensive rating. Most analysts believe it’s only bound to get better once Damian Lillard becomes more comfortable with the Bucks. It’s on defense that everyone on the roster will have to significantly improve.
The Milwaukee Bucks are 25th in defensive rating and are allowing 118.6 points per game to opponents, which is also ranked the same in the league. They know that their offense can only carry them so far. The defense will have to step up moving forward.
The Milwaukee Bucks aren’t overplaying their hand in pick-and-rolls involving Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard
Every opponent knows that sooner or later, the Milwaukee Bucks’ bread-and-butter play will have Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard involved. Pick-and-roll action between the two was something coaches were quickly trying to figure out as soon as Lillard’s acquisition was announced.
The Bucks, though, haven’t hung their hats on that play. Lillard has initiated more such plays with former teammate Jusuf Nurkic, a much lesser threat on offense than the two-time MVP. Milwaukee may eventually end up relying on that play quicker than they would have liked if they continued their roller-coaster ride.
Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo are still trying to adjust to each other. They also want more diversity in their offense. Once they figured it out, their fun would extend from practice to actual games.