The most significant criticism of Giannis Antetokounmpo throughout his NBA career has been his lack of a jump shot.
It is something that has followed him for the past eight seasons, despite the surplus of awards he has racked up since his rise to stardom. Antetokounmpo quieted the notion that he needed to add a jumper to his arsenal as he led the Milwaukee Bucks to their first championship in 50 years over the summer, but it still remains true that he would be that much more lethal with one. It seems as if Antetokounmpo himself understood this as he posted some workout videos of him shooting in the gym this past offseason. Everyone knows that those summer workout videos from any player can often be deceiving, but judging by Antetokounmpo’s play in the preseason, he might not be just doing it for social media.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has looked far more comfortable with his tweaked jump shot during the 2021 NBA preseason
Antetokounmpo has shown flashes of a jumper in his arsenal, but nothing ever consistent enough to make him a legitimate threat outside of the paint. Well, according to NBA.com/stats, the Greek Freak shot 5-of-7 (71.4 percent) from the mid-range throughout the preseason. While it comes in a significantly small sample size, it is certainly welcoming to see Antetokounmpo hit the shots with regularity in this stretch. After all, Antetokounmpo shot 51-of-143 (35.7 percent) from this area all of last season. Confidence in taking such shots has not been the issue for him, but rather knocking them down consistently. That was no such problem in the preseason. After all, just take a look at this beautiful fadeaway in the clip below.
"I just fade away." pic.twitter.com/gcHChkB493
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) October 16, 2021
The mid-range game was great for Antetokounmpo, but it was overshadowed by his shooting from behind the arc. Shooting 4-of-6 (68.8 percent) from long range during the preseason, the two-time MVP undeniably turned some heads. Much like the mid-range, Antetokounmpo has never been bashful about heaving it from deep, the biggest issue is that he just has not managed to hit them at a level where teams will go out of their way to defend him on the perimeter. Truly, they embrace when he takes those shots. Well, if Antetokounmpo is taking pull-up 3-pointers in transition and making them as he did in the preseason, opposing teams may have to rethink that strategy when they face the Bucks.
As a career 28.7 percent career 3-point shooter, the outside shot has been the weakest link in the 26-year-old’s game to this point. Although three preseason games are not enough to coin Giannis as a great 3-point shooter, seeing him hit four triples in six attempts is undeniably a good sign. His biggest question now will be whether or not he can translate this newfound shooting over into the regular season and hit these shots with consistency. Between his mid-range and the outside shot, the form just simply looks better. Mechanics have been a talking point surrounding Giannis for the past few seasons, but this new form appears to be tweaked, and it is working thus far.
Opposing teams have dreaded the day that Antetokounmpo, who is already arguably the best player in the game, finally gets a jumper. His critics have been saying for years that he needs to work on expanding his game, and it looks like he has done just that. Considering Antetokounmpo just had one of the most dominant Finals outings ever by any player ever, seeing him dominate inside while also hitting his shots from the mid-range and behind the arc is something that could take his game to the next level. Many will brush it off due to it being the preseason, but he will aim to prove them wrong, just as he did by leading this team to the championship last season.
As great as he already is, Giannis Antetokounmpo might have patched up the biggest hole in his game.