Good morning to everyone but especially to...
GIANNIS ANTETOKOUNMPO
It's hard to score at least 40 points in back-to-back games and be overshadowed, but with the recent scoring binges in the NBA, that's what's happened to Giannis Antetokounmpo. Tuesday night, he made sure no one would outshine him.
The Greek Freak racked up a career-high 55 points in a 123-113 win over the Wizards.
It ties the second-most points in a game in Bucks history. Michael Redd scored 57 in a 2006 contest.Antetokounmpo joins Lew Alcindor (later Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) and Flynn Robinson as the only Bucks players to score 40+ in three straight games.Antetokounmpo also joins Russell Westbrook and Moses Malone as the only players to have 40+ points and 10+ rebounds in three straight games since the 1976 NBA merger.Our Jack Maloney was at the game to see Antetokounmpo's dominance live and up close, while Brad Botkin took a look at some potential reasons behind the recent scoring outbursts from stars this season.
Botkin: "Just 10 weeks into the schedule, there have already been 14 performances of at least 50 points this season. That matches the total from all of 2020-21. There were 19 50-point games last season. At this pace, there's a good chance that total gets dusted by the All-Star break. ... What we are watching this season is amazing stuff. It's not about the defense. Or the foul calls. Or the pace. It's about a league that has never been more stocked with all-time offensive talent. I, too, miss a lot of things about the 80's and 90's era NBA game. But from a pure skill standpoint, I can't imagine a better time to be an NBA fan."
