NBA Finals- When Giannis Antetokounmpo dropped 50 points to seal the Bucks' first title since 1971
Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks have come up short in the playoffs the last two seasons. The Bucks lost in seven games to the Boston Celtics in the 2022 Eastern Conference semifinals. They then followed that up with a 4-1 first-round loss to the Miami Heat in this year’s playoffs. However, it was still just under two years ago that Antetokounmpo had a legendary performance to lead Milwaukee to its first NBA championship since 1971.
After trailing the Phoenix Suns 2-0 in the 2021 NBA Finals, many wrote the Bucks off. However, Milwaukee responded by winning four straight games to win the series 4-2. This included a Game 6 that featured an all-time great closeout game performance from Antetokounmpo. The superstar forward finished with 50 points, 14 rebounds, two assists and five blocks on 64.0% shooting to secure the title. He also famously shot 17-for-19 (89.5%) at the free-throw line after struggling all playoffs.
In total, Antetokounmpo averaged 35.2 points, 13.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.8 blocks per game on 61.8% shooting over six games. His elite two-way performance earned him the 2021 NBA Finals MVP award.
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Giannis Antetokounmpo on the Bucks winning the 2021 NBA title
After dispatching Phoenix to win the 2021 NBA title, Giannis Antetokounmpo spoke about how happy he was to prove his critics wrong:
“This is time to celebrate,” Antetokounmpo said.
“People told me I can’t make free throws and I made them tonight. And I’m a freaking champion.”
He also highlighted the satisfaction of winning a championship without resorting to joining a super team, emphasizing that he would rather win one title the way the Bucks did than win multiple titles by forming a super team elsewhere. Antetokounmpo acknowledged the difficulties of winning championships and recognized that there are no guarantees for future success.
“We might never win another one,” Antetokounmpo said.
“It's fine. We did it. We did what we were supposed to do. And I’d rather do it this way — win one this way than go somewhere else in a super team and win two or three.”
“We might never win another one. It's fine. We did it. We did what we're supposed to do. And I’d rather do it this way — win one this way than go somewhere else in a super team and win two or three.”
@SportsCenter conversation with Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo: https://t.co/6z5U7IyydH
Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo’s co-star Khris Middleton spoke about how much the title meant to the city of Milwaukee:
“For the city, I’m sure it means everything,” Middleton said.
“They’ve seen the work that we put in over the years for them, to get to this point. I hope they enjoyed it just like we are now.”