Milwaukee Bucks Roundtable: Expectations for the year ahead

Q2. Giannis Antetokounmpo is considered one of the MVP frontrunners by major oddsmakers. What do you expect him to achieve this year, and can he become the franchise’s first winner of that accolade since 1974?

TK: He definitely can. If he averages 28 points, 11 rebounds and six assists (which is my personal projected stat-line for him) and te Bucks manage to be a top-three seed, then he will get serious consideration.

JK: It’s completely possible, but I don’t see it happening this year. I do see, however, a First-Team All-NBA appearance and maybe another Second-Team All-Defense and Giannis cementing himself as a top-five player in the league, definitively passing the likes of Russell Westbrook and James Harden. This year, I expect a stat-line somewhere around 28-10-5-2-2.

AM: I think, as always, it’s safe to expect Giannis to do the unexpected and awe-inspiring. I’m not saying this will happen, but when even the hypothetical exists of Giannis improving as a shooter and finding another gear, it’s close to impossible to put a cap on what he will achieve. I’m predicting he will win MVP, as his current ability, room for growth and team trajectory all set up perfectly for such a push. Beyond that incredible honor, something in line with the averages mentioned above seems accurate, and most importantly, I believe he’ll lead Milwaukee to at least one postseason series win.

RK: Even though the MVP is supposed to be an individual award, there are so many stars in the NBA so the award is contingent on team success. Last season, Giannis averaged 26.9 points, 10 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.4 blocks, and finished sixth in MVP voting. To put that in perspective, LeBron James averaged 26.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.9 blocks when he won the award during the 2012-13 campaign. While those numbers are similar to what Giannis did last season, LeBron won the award because of how incredibly successful his Miami Heat team was that ended up winning the championship that year. Though Russell Westbrook’s win in 2016-17 opened up the MVP award to a player on a team with less than 50 wins, I believe that with players like LeBron James and Anthony Davis pushing for the award as well, the Bucks have to be a 50+ win team and show that they are a team to be reckoned with for Giannis to be the league MVP.

IS: On this, I find Zach Lowe’s prediction to be pretty much spot on: the Bucks will be much better this year in terms of record and seed, Giannis will be the clear star of the team, and the other candidates are all carrying significant baggage. He’s going to put up MVP numbers, he’s got a good narrative, and a good team. Give it to him.

BP: I don’t think it is very likely that Giannis’ individual stats take a huge jump this year. There isn’t a whole lot of room for improvement when you average 26.9 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 4.8 assists on 59.8 percent true shooting. However, I think this offense will make things easier for him, which could allow for some development on the margins of his game, namely his passing and defense. I expect him to make second team All-NBA and first team All-Defense now that voters won’t have the “he plays on a bad defensive team” excuse.

As for the MVP debate, it seems that in recent years the voters have bought into narratives that affect their voting. Giannis’ typical production will already put him in the conversation, but if the Bucks can manage to win 50-plus games and grab the third seed in the playoffs, I think it will be a toss-up between he and Anthony Davis. The story of Giannis leading this team to finally living up to its potential would be too good for the voters to pass up.

JT: The days of Giannis taking these mammoth leaps in his individual play are close to closing, if they haven’t fully already. Instead, it’s in and around the margins where we’ll see him master his game even further to where stands at in its current state, the last frontier being his three-point shot (which has been very promising to see so far).

As for what he’ll achieve for the year and his MVP candidacy, the sky is obviously the limit and he certainly has the wingspan to carry multiple awards at a time when he likely takes in next year’s NBA Awards Show. In all seriousness, it wouldn’t be all that surprising to see Giannis’ numbers come in just over what he put up last season and see him rack up plenty of MVP buzz as long as the team success is there to sway voters.

In the end, I think he ends up just falling short to Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans, but the right pieces and the rich narrative are all there to make it a very realistic possibility, to the delight of all Bucks fans.

RG: I think he definitely can win MVP. As long as he continues to show the improvements we saw snippets of in pre-season he will have a great chance to win. I also think that in order for him to win, the Bucks will need to be at least a top-three seed in the East.