Giannis Antetokounmpo already made the headlines in the first game of the season with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Greek player is entering this season with a lot of expectations and every mistake he makes will be overblown by his haters and the people that don’t like him.
Well, Giannis had the chance to force OT last night, when the Milwaukee Bucks were taking the Boston Celtics. After Jayson Tatum hit a clutch 3-pointer on the current NBA MVP and DPOY award winner, he had the chance to redeem himself on the other end.
Antetokounmpo went to the free-throw line to take his two shots, making one and missing the second. That missed free throw was the chance for the Bucks to send the game to overtime, giving the win to the Celtics, who won a thriller.
Giannis Antetokounmpo claims he won’t run away from clutch moments after missing a free throw against Celtics
Of course, this earned him a lot of criticism and Giannis took it like a man. It is curious that this happens when you know the huge regime he put himself into during the offseason, watching his coaches, his girlfriend and son getting punished (running around the court and doing exercises) whenever he missed a missed FT.
Failing is normal, yes, but Giannis has everything to make the free throw and he blew it. After the game ended, Antetokounmpo talked with the media, explaining how he felt at that moment and what’s next for him. Giannis’ inability to lead his team to a title has been criticized for a couple of seasons now and this blunder doesn’t help his cause.
“One, two, three, four, five dribbles. Put the ball at your chin.” Antetokounmpo said, via The Athletic’s Eric Nehm. “Shoot it high. That’s what I say to myself over and over and over and over again.”
Giannis has already moved on from that moment, making it clear that he won’t run away from those challenges whenever his team needs him. The Greek Freak knows he needs to do big things to be great and he’s not afraid of anything.
“You learn from it and the more you’re in a situation like that, the more you can succeed, the more you can get the best out of moments like that,” Antetokounmpo said. “So I want to be in those moments. I want to be down the stretch. I want to shoot the last two free throws. I want to shoot the last shot.”
This season will bring a lot of challenges for Giannis and he’s apparently ready for them. This was only the first game and Giannis can recover from this false step. The Bucks are big expectations, though, so fans will expect to see something different from their superstar in the postseason.