Much has been said about Giannis Antetokounmpo's all-world talent throughout his tenure with the Milwaukee Bucks.
His inward gravity is as omnipotent a scoring threat as it is a play generator. There’s a numinous sort of certainty to his game; over the past few years, opposing defenses have just known that Giannis is inevitable. His greatness has reached a level where many expect it and often fail to see his impact. As a certain NBA guard would say, he isn’t a system player but is a system unto himself.
That’s all well and good when you’re Giannis Antetokounmpo. At the same time, though, when you play next to a guard like Damian Lillard, you also have your own role to play. It’s what makes their pairing so compelling; the push-and-pull between two stars who are so perfectly complementary to one another.
And the thing is, a handful of games into October, the Greek Freak isn’t playing his role around Lillard to perfection just yet. He has one fatal flaw in his game, and it’s one that we’ve already seen cost the team offensively. And no, it’s not his shooting.
While his athleticism and skill set propel the Milwaukee Bucks into contention, a closer look reveals that his subpar screen-setting could be a fatal flaw as the season progresses.
Giannis Antetokounmpo still needs to work on his screen-setting
There's a reason that Damian Lillard, whose explosive ball-handling and All-World shooting touch are predicated on creating space from his defenders, has taken a liking to Brook Lopez as his pick-and-roll partner since the start of the 2024-25 NBA season.
In modern basketball, effective screen-setting is a fundamental skill that can significantly impact offensive flow. Screens create opportunities by freeing up teammates for open shots or driving lanes. For a player like Giannis Antetokounmpo, who often draws defensive attention, setting solid screens can amplify his team's offensive efficiency.
However, Giannis's approach to setting screens has often been criticized for its inconsistency.
Despite playing next to Damian Lillard, Antetokounmpo — one of the best frontcourt players in the league — has averaged just a little over two screen assists per game, which only yielded a measly five screen assist points per game.
Of course, Giannis has often handled the ball himself and mostly played power forward, where Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis were the ones in charge of screening for him. At the same time, you would expect more effective screen-setting from someone who spent 16 percent of his minutes at the center position in 2023.
Perhaps as a result, Milwaukee is currently the second-worst team in the league on off-screen plays, according to NBA.com/stats playtype data, after scoring just half a point per possession when they go to that play.
In fact, more than a tenth of Giannis Antetokounmpo's offensive diet sees him functioning as the pick-and-roll roll man, a play type where he only finished in the 30th percentile in his position, scoring just 0.92 points per possession and three points per game.
The single player with the most imposing inward gravity in the game of basketball has no business being this pedestrian as a roller, and for this writer, it goes back to setting hard screens in the first place.
Part of it is that he seems intent on immediately rolling to the rim to score or make a play even as he sets the screens, and even his most solid screens tend to look like ghost screens. This results in shoddy, half-hearted screens that do little to create genuine advantages for the offense, especially when up against elite defenders who can navigate those screens with ease.
At the moment, the screens he does set just seem awkward and noncommittal, as if the seven-foot, 253-pound specimen of a man is merely going through the motions in one of basketball's most consequential actions on the court.
Milwaukee's offense needs his screen-setting
Past that, Giannis' screen-setting often lacks the precision and physicality required at the highest level. While he possesses the size and strength to deliver impactful screens, his execution and positioning sometimes fall short.
Observers have long noted that he tends to set screens too high or fails to establish a solid base, allowing defenders to navigate around him easily. Your angling, too, can spell the difference between a back screen or a flare screen, which necessitate completely different responses from whoever's coming off it. This diminishes the effectiveness of plays designed to exploit mismatches or create open shots for teammates.
The Bucks' offensive structure relies heavily on pick-and-roll scenarios, where Giannis should be a pivotal player. However, when he fails to set effective screens, it disrupts the rhythm of the offense.
Teammates like Damian Lillard and Khris Middleton thrive in situations where they can leverage screens to create space. If Giannis cannot consistently provide that support, it puts additional pressure on their offensive schemes. This may also be one reason Milwaukee Bucks fans still don't see the vaunted Dame-Giannis pick-and-roll as often as they would like.
As the Milwaukee Bucks aim for another championship run, any deficiencies in Giannis's game could be magnified during high-stakes playoff matchups. Teams will undoubtedly target this weakness during scouting reports, potentially leading to defensive schemes designed to exploit it.
If opposing teams can limit the effectiveness of Giannis Antetokounmpo's screens, they may force the Milwaukee Bucks into more predictable offensive sets, diminishing their chances of success.
While Giannis Antetokounmpo remains an extraordinary talent with a myriad of strengths, addressing his screen-setting technique is crucial for the Milwaukee Bucks' aspirations this season. As they prepare for what they hope will be a deep playoff run, refining this aspect of his game could prove vital.
The stakes are high; if Giannis can elevate his screen-setting proficiency, it may well be the difference between another early exit and a championship celebration.
Stay tuned for more Milwaukee Bucks analysis.