Giannis dunking over Tim Hardaway Jr.
Being a man who possesses otherworldly talents, the highlight reel for Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo is quite lengthy at this stage in his six-year career.
At a moment’s notice, all of Antetokounmpo’s various skills and unique physical and athletic gifts can produce some of the most jaw-dropping highlights any fan of the game can witness in their lifetime. And it just so happens that the current two-time All-Star can rattle off these type of plays at least once a game on a near-nightly basis.
Now, while it’s hard to simply pick and choose the cream of the crop, given their frequency, some of Antetokounmpo’s more enduring highlights have come under the brightest of spotlights and at some of the league’s most prestigious venues; the prime example being Madison Square Garden.
After all, MSG birthed the origin of “Mean Mug” Giannis during his sophomore season, and served as the site for his first-ever game winner, which came midway through his breakthrough All-Star campaign in 2016-17. With those kind of high marks under his belt, how could Antetokounmpo top those feats in his future visits at The Garden?
Well, Antetokounmpo did his best to do exactly that in the Bucks’ first visit to MSG in early February last season as he improbably slammed home an alley-oop dunk supplied by Khris Middleton over Knicks wing Tim Hardaway Jr.
Yes, Antetokounmpo dunked over a live human being during the run of play in transition midway through the third quarter, leaving many, including a few players on the court, stunned and dazed by what they just saw go down in front of their very eyes.
Once the reality of the situation dawned on everyone following the game and across NBA Twitter, the comparison to Vince Carter‘s legendary dunk over French international Frederic Weis from the 2000 Sydney Olympics was immediately drawn.
Further reactions of various Bucks players and Antetokounmpo himself regarding the dunk can be found in the wonderfully written piece by The Athletic’s Eric Nehm on the 23-year-old’s best moments at The Garden, but it’s certainly a moment that will follow the Greek throughout the rest of his career and beyond.