Bucks coach Jason Kidd is very happy to heap praise upon his team's young star Giannis Antetokounmpo. This week he compared the "Greek Freak" to not one, but two NBA legends.
“He can be Magic Johnson and KG [Kevin Garnett],” Kidd told The Vertical. “When he puts his mind to it, he can do everything defensively.”
Antetokounmpo has been dominant so far this season and is currently leading the odds in Las Vegas to win the NBA MVP award. He is averaging 36.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists through four games for the 3-1 Bucks.
He may not yet be the best player in the NBA, but more than one person has suggested he will be in the next few years. Part of it has been Kidd's tutelage of the budding superstar. His head coach, a 10-time All-Star, has done everything possible to help the 22-year-old reach his full potential.
Antetokounmpo's effort this offseason blossomed after meeting Garnett. The lessons the future Hall of Famer taught Antetokounmpo left a lasting impression on the youngster.
“Have a killer mentality,” Antetokounmpo told The Vertical. “Go out there and play to kill. For me, I’m not going to say I was born with it, but it’s coming. I want to win. It’s hard, you know? With back-to-backs, a lot of games, sometimes you think, ‘I’ve got to take a day off today.’ But you have to push through it. The greats did. KG said you have to have that mentality. If you are hurt, you have to fight through it.”
For now Antetokounmpo has been the most exciting NBA player through the first week of the season and opponents are taking notice.
“He’s gotten everybody’s attention,” Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. “He just keeps getting better. He’s figured out what works for him. Everyone goes into the game with the same scouting report on great players, whether it is [Russell] Westbrook, [Stephen] Curry or [Kevin] Durant or Giannis. You try to limit them as much as possible. But they are great for a reason.”
