Milwaukee Bucks: Is Giannis Antetokounmpo the MVP So Far?
By Robby Cowles
Have a moment on the national stage
When I said Giannis needs to have a “moment” on the national stage, I was referring to how every MVP has a play or a game that cements them as the favorite.
Harden crossed Wesley Johnson into the Quantum Realm, Westbrook hit that ridiculous game-winner in Denver, Durant, Curry and LeBron all had their big moments where it was obvious they were the most valuable player.
With only half the season left it’s hard to say if Giannis has had his moment yet but he’s certainly already had some special moments.
Giannis has had some of the most vicious dunks and posterizations of the season already, whether he’s murdering his fellow countryman Kosta Koufos or dunking Jon Leuer back to 2018 or just dunking everything against the Celtics in Boston, there are a number of highlights to choose from.
The Bucks have gotten the chance to play on national television on a number of occasions already and they’ve made the most of the opportunities to send a message to the rest of the league.
They blew out the Warriors in Golden State early in the season and they also blew out the Celtics in Boston. The Bucks took care of business against the Knicks on Christmas Day in what was probably their most watched game of the season and eked out a tough win against Harden and the Rockets in Houston.
In the end, a win is a win, it doesn’t matter if the game is televised on ESPN, TNT or just regional television. But when the Bucks beat a really good team on national television, that gets people talking, then they talk more the next day about Giannis and the Bucks and hype begins to grow.
It’s important to remember that an MVP campaign is just that: a campaign. Like an election, the winner is decided by a vote so if Giannis wants to win he has to get his name out there for the voters to see and talk about.
Giannis has already had more highlights in just 40 games than most superstars will have in a season, but I’ve got a feeling he’s still got something special left for the rest of the season.
Whether it’s another monster jam over a star, a game-winner or something else, Giannis still has a lot of season left to do something special.
I can only imagine what it will be.