Giannis Antetokounmpo Needs To Keep Getting To The Line

In a season that’s now about nothing more than development, the Milwaukee Bucks could do a lot worse than have Giannis Antetokounmpo live at the free throw line.

There was plenty of discussion among both fans and media last summer about the prospect of Giannis Antetokounmpo making some sort of “third year leap”.

Blessed with an almost unique set of physical attributes, Antetokounmpo came to the Bucks as raw as raw can be, yet slowly but surely he has made strides forward. His decisions aren’t always the correct ones, consistency is still an issue, and it’s often hard to gauge where his confidence is at, but most importantly, Antetokounmpo is getting better though

His growth this season hasn’t quite transpired in the explosive fashion that many may have hoped for, but Giannis has continued to improve steadily since day one.

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This season has seen the Greek Freak’s minutes rise again, and accordingly he has made nice per game improvements in points (15.9 from 12.7), rebounds (7.1 from 6.7), assists (2.8 from 2.6), steals (1.0 from 0.9) and blocks (1.1 from 1.0).

Importantly, he’s also shooting the ball more, and more efficiently from the field, up to 11.8 attempts per game from 9.6, and tracking to post his first season above 50 percent from the field.

The three-point shot still hasn’t come around in the way that many hope it some day will for Giannis, and after a year of being told not to take the shot, it’s valid in many ways to wonder the impact that had on his psyche and perception of his own shooting ability.

Holding out for his shot to develop doesn’t need to be intrinsically tied to hopes of Antetokounmpo becoming a true first option on offense though, as there’s another skill which could push him into that stratosphere.

Jan 2, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) shoots the ball against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports /

It sounds ridiculous to say this, but free throws have developed something of a bad reputation of late. The combination of the prevalent culture of the “Hack-A-Shaq” strategy around the league, and the way in which many of the league’s stars often look to sell the free throw rather than making a play, may not make freebies seem quite as appealing, but it shouldn’t diminish their importance in any way.

If you remove Andre Drummond and DeAndre Jordan from the equation and pretend hacking doesn’t exist, the remaining players in the top ten for free throws attempted reads very much like a list of some of the best offensive players in the league: DeMarcus Cousins, James Harden, DeMar DeRozan, Kevin Durant, Jimmy Butler, Danilo Gallinari, Russell Westbrook and Andrew Wiggins.

Almost universally, those players have a common trait of representing a terrible matchup for most opponents at their position on a nightly basis, much like Giannis does. If they decide to attack and score, it’s not easy to stop them.

Getting to the free throw line is a sign of aggression, something which people have long cried out for more of from Antetokounmpo, and over the last few weeks that’s what he has delivered on.

For a player who averages 3.8 trips to the line a night over the course of his career, since the turn of the year, Antetokounmpo has cranked that up to 5.8. In a much smaller sample size, looking at his last three games, Giannis has averaged 8.0 free throws a game (9th in the NBA for February).

It’s about him having the confidence to take control and drive in order to draw the foul, but from a skills point of view there’s no question that becoming a free throw line mainstay is within Giannis’ reach.

Three-point shooting is the league’s hottest fashion right now, and I don’t say that to suggest that that’s going to change longer term. What it doesn’t mean is that the first step to superstardom for a player who is still figuring it out on offense has to be developing shooting range. There are other options.

Antetokounmpo may eventually develop a reliable three-point shot, but for anybody looking for him to push his game to new levels in a hurry, getting to the free-throw line more often may be a goal which is much more within his reach.

If we set eight free throw attempts a night as his benchmark, just by shooting at his current averages from the field and the charity stripe, Antetokounmpo immediately jumps up into the 18-20 point per game range.

Next: Stephen Curry Is Proof Enough That It's Too Early To Give Up On Jabari Parker

Sure, it’s vital that Giannis takes the open, rhythm jumpers when they’re there for him and his team needs them, but both he and the Bucks would be well served by seeing him grow more aggressive with his drives, rather than settling in an aid to add range.

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