After a spanking in Cleveland and two close victories against the Pistons, the Bucks found their momentum and their basketball last night by winning 126-116 against the Cavaliers. A more than convincing victory since Donovan Mitchell's teammates remained on eight victories in a row with an average difference of 22.5 points per game. A success acquired with Joe Prunty on the bench, and a Giannis Antetokounmpo more leader than ever.
If at the start of the season, the “Greek Freak” had announced that he was leaving the keys to the attack to Damian Lillard, it is clear that it is he who best embodies Milwaukee's strike force through his rebounds, his runs and his general aggressiveness. That night, Giannis compiled 35 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists in the victory against the Cavaliers. This is his third triple-double in four games, and he came close to achieving four in a row since he had accumulated 31 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists on Saturday against the Pistons.
A course to follow
But the most important thing is the victory and it's almost a form of tribute to Adrian Griffin.
“For a coach like Griff’, from day one, everything was focused on cohesion,” underlines Antetokounmpo. “He has always led this group in the direction we set out at the beginning of the year. Even though he is no longer here, we are still human beings. This hurts everyone. But we must continue to move forward. We have one goal in mind, which is to be the best team possible.”
For Giannis, it's a 7th triple-double this season, and it already equals his single-season record with around forty matches remaining. But by firing Griffin, management sent a message and its leader understood it well.
“The franchise has very big ambitions, from the owners, the management, but also from ourselves” continues Giannis. “The NBA is a business…I’ve been in this situation before. I know how it works, and I have to move forward. This evening, Joe Prunty was our coach, and we had a very good match against a very good team who beat us by 40 points. Tomorrow, Joe Prunty will still be the coach, we will watch the video and let him guide us towards the course defined at the start of the season. »
Then the time will come for the discovery of Doc Rivers…
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2013-14 | MIL | 77 | 25 | 41.4 | 34.7 | 68.3 | 1.0 | 3.4 | 4.4 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 6.8 |
| 2014-15 | MIL | 81 | 31 | 49.1 | 15.9 | 74.1 | 1.2 | 5.5 | 6.7 | 2.6 | 3.1 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 1.1 | 12.7 |
| 2015-16 | MIL | 80 | 35 | 50.6 | 25.7 | 72.4 | 1.4 | 6.2 | 7.7 | 4.3 | 3.2 | 1.2 | 2.6 | 1.4 | 16.9 |
| 2016-17 | MIL | 80 | 36 | 52.1 | 27.2 | 77.0 | 1.8 | 7.0 | 8.8 | 5.4 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 2.9 | 1.9 | 22.9 |
| 2017-18 | MIL | 75 | 37 | 52.9 | 30.7 | 76.0 | 2.1 | 8.0 | 10.0 | 4.8 | 3.1 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 1.4 | 26.9 |
| 2018-19 ★ | MIL | 72 | 33 | 57.8 | 25.6 | 72.9 | 2.2 | 10.3 | 12.5 | 5.9 | 3.2 | 1.3 | 3.7 | 1.5 | 27.7 |
| 2019-20 ★ | MIL | 63 | 30 | 55.3 | 30.4 | 63.3 | 2.2 | 11.4 | 13.6 | 5.6 | 3.1 | 1.0 | 3.7 | 1.1 | 29.5 |
| 2020-21 | MIL | 61 | 33 | 56.9 | 30.3 | 68.5 | 1.6 | 9.4 | 11.0 | 5.9 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 1.2 | 28.2 |
| 2021-22 | MIL | 67 | 33 | 55.3 | 29.3 | 72.2 | 2.0 | 9.6 | 11.6 | 5.8 | 3.2 | 1.1 | 3.3 | 1.4 | 29.9 |
| 2022-23 | MIL | 63 | 32 | 55.3 | 27.5 | 64.5 | 2.2 | 9.6 | 11.8 | 5.7 | 3.1 | 0.8 | 3.9 | 0.8 | 31.1 |
| 2023-24 | MIL | 41 | 35 | 60.3 | 23.0 | 66.9 | 2.7 | 8.8 | 11.5 | 6.1 | 2.9 | 1.4 | 3.6 | 1.1 | 31.2 |
| Total | 760 | 33 | 54.1 | 28.5 | 70.5 | 1.8 | 7.9 | 9.7 | 4.8 | 3.0 | 1.2 | 3.0 | 1.3 | 23.1 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
