We know he is a stat padder. We know he can be selfish. Well tonight, especially in the first half Giannis did nothing but drive into the paint.
Only 4 assists in the entire game? Really Giannis? And as you can see in the shot chart, he has no mid range game when anyone is defending. Even fans on the team facebook page are objecting:
The Milwaukee Bucks had no business losing to the Orlando Magic tonight. Coming off a four-game winning streak, with Giannis Antetokounmpo listed as probable despite nursing a calf issue, the Bucks were poised to feast on a Magic team reeling from five straight losses and missing key rotation players. Yet, as the clock hit zeros at Fiserv Forum, it was Orlando celebrating an improbable upset—and Giannis, the Bucks’ indomitable superstar, shoulders much of the blame for letting this one slip away.
Giannis is a selfish ball hog as per the chart above. The Bucks entered the night as Eastern Conference contenders, boasting a 36-25 record and a top-five offense fueled by Giannis’s MVP-caliber play. Averaging 30.8 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 6.3 assists on 60.2% shooting, he’s been a one-man wrecking crew all season. Against an Orlando squad that’s struggled to find its footing, this should’ve been a layup—figuratively and literally. But when it mattered most, his flaws and decisions—or lack thereof—doomed Milwaukee.
Free Throws Haunt Him Again
Then there’s the free-throw line, Giannis’s kryptonite. At 59.1% this season—his worst ever—he’s a liability in tight games. T As one Twitter user put it, “Giannis’s FTs are why we can’t have nice things.”
Invisible When It Counted
The final nail? The last possession. Seconds on the clock, the Bucks needed their superstar to take over. Giannis seemed like a beast all night but where was he when the game was on the line? Whether it was Doc Rivers’ play design or Giannis not asserting himself, the ball ended up in Damian Lillard’s hands for a contested fadeaway. Giannis, parked in the corner, didn’t even touch it. For a player who thrives on physicality and willpower, his absence from the decisive moment was glaring. Fans were ruthless: “Giannis disappears when we need him most. Unacceptable.” But Giannis knows he can’t do clutch.
About that last shot selection
Fans are so unfair on Dame. Because Giannis has made it impossible for him to operate in clutch. Everyone knows he will take the shot, everyone is on him. He gets no help mostly because Giannis is chicken and unable to help in clutch. He knows he will mess up as he can’t dribble under pressure and he makes terrible passing choices when it counts. Even if he does pass to Giannis, Giannis just gives it straight back. Also Giannis is the worse screener in the league and doesn’t understand angles at all. So it’s solo Dame time and everyone knows it. Almost impossible to score like that.
Not All on Him—But Mostly
Sure, you could point fingers elsewhere. Lillard’s shot selection can be streaky, others have been inconsistent, and Rivers’ late-game strategy often feels like a coin toss. But Giannis is the Bucks’ heartbeat, the guy who’s supposed to drag them across the finish line. His 4.2 turnovers per game (second only to Nikola Jokić among big men) and shaky free-throw shooting aren’t new issues, yet they stung extra hard tonight. Against a Magic team that’s now beaten Milwaukee twice this season (remember that 116-93 rout on January 10?), Giannis had a chance to assert dominance and didn’t.
