Milwaukee Bucks: Whose stock is rising and falling?

Giannis Antetokounmpo

At the beginning of the season Giannis Antetokounmpo was already an elite player in the NBA. The season prior, at the age of 22, Giannis was elected Second Team All-NBA and was widely considered by many, one of the best three players in the Eastern Conference.

Amazingly enough, since that time Giannis’ stock has only increased. After a scorching hot start, where Antetokounmpo was the legitimate early season favorite for MVP, Giannis has settled into being considered a top-5 to top-10 player, and easily the second best player in the East.

Giannis has made strides in parts of his game since last season, but the biggest change from last year is his increase in scoring and scoring efficiency.

This season, Giannis is averaging 28.6 points per 36, compared to 23.2 last season, and is doing so with a 61.4 percent true shooting percentage, up from 59.9 percent the season prior. Very rarely does a player, particularly one who was already the focal point of the offense, take on a larger burden on offense only to be more efficient in doing so.

With the offense leaning so heavy on Giannis, a defensive drop-off would seem acceptable. Giannis, however, has not let that happen. Through 25 games Giannis is averaging 1.6 blocks and 1.7 steals per game, and is considered a legitimate Defensive Player of the Year candidate.

Perhaps no team in the NBA leans on their superstar more than the Bucks lean on Giannis. Giannis does a bit of everything for the team placing either first or second in points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals. Luckily for the Bucks, his stock doesn’t seem to be going down any time soon.