{"id":1400,"date":"2016-10-10T16:55:07","date_gmt":"2016-10-10T20:55:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/?p=1400"},"modified":"2016-10-10T16:55:07","modified_gmt":"2016-10-10T20:55:07","slug":"giannis-antetokounmpo-contract","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2016\/10\/10\/giannis-antetokounmpo-contract\/","title":{"rendered":"Giannis Antetokounmpo Set to Justify Huge Contract"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last month, Giannis Antetokounmpo<\/a><\/strong> signed a four-year, $100 million contract extension<\/a> with the Milwaukee Bucks<\/strong>. Although an eye-popping\u00a0figure, it was $6 million less than the max deal that Antetokounmpo\u00a0clearly deserved. He was unselfish enough to forgo the extra money, allowing the Bucks a better chance of\u00a0re-signing\u00a0Jabari Parker<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>next off-season.<\/p>\n

Giannis Antetokounmpo Set to Justify Huge Contract<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Antetokounmpo’s altruistic nature is replicated on the court, too. His move to point guard last season yielded an average of\u00a07.2 assists per game after the All-Star break<\/a>, improved from\u00a02.8 before it. But he still has work to do. Despite his boost in numbers towards the end of last season, the Bucks comfortably missed the playoffs with a 33-49 win-loss record. In fact, they were marginally worse after the All-Star break, going just 11-17.<\/p>\n

Although Milwaukee’s demise is far from the Greek Freak’s\u00a0fault, the team needs to work out how to translate his obvious talent into team success. The Bucks’ major flaw last season was their lack of three-point shooting, posting a league-low 440 makes<\/a>\u00a0from downtown. An injury to sharpshooter\u00a0Khris Middleton<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0adds to their woes in this regard.<\/p>\n

But Antetokounmpo has the passing talent to find open shooters, and the addition of premier catch-and-shoot threat<\/a> Mirza Teletovic<\/a> <\/strong>will be a danger to opposing defenses. Antetokounmpo vowed to improve his own three-point shot<\/a> over the summer. His quiet performances in the Bucks’ two preseason games are too small a sample\u00a0to display any\u00a0improvement just yet.<\/p>\n

Besides\u00a0his outside shooting deficiency, Antetokounmpo\u00a0has virtually every other attribute to be an elite player. He seems destined to make his first All-Star appearance next\u00a0February if he can continue\u00a0his monstrous numbers<\/a> from the end of last season. He is a great rebounder and – as the main ball handler – this ability will allow\u00a0the Bucks to\u00a0be deadly on the\u00a0break<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Antetokounmpo’s Improvements<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Antetokounmpo’s\u00a0talent as a ball handler goes beyond his good assist numbers. Last season, his usage went up from 18.5\u00a0to 21.8\u00a0percent, but his turnover rate went down from 13.2 to 11.9\u00a0percent. Antetokounmpo\u00a0went against the usual trend and was more\u00a0<\/em>efficient despite higher usage.<\/p>\n

The only other question for Antetokounmpo to answer is: how will he handle his\u00a0newfound stardom? Based on how\u00a0his NBA<\/strong> career has gone so far, it seems that he can absolutely stay grounded. Milwaukee is the ideal place for such an easygoing player; it allowed him to stay relatively under the radar early in his career.<\/p>\n

Even with the extra spotlight that his production and contract have\u00a0garnered, the Greek Freak looks unaffected. On the Bucks’ media day, he cracked jokes<\/a> and\u00a0spoke\u00a0humbly\u00a0when asked about his\u00a0new contract.<\/p>\n

Antetokounmpo\u00a0is clearly focused on his duties on the court, rather than distractions off it. The Bucks have to\u00a0hope\u00a0that his unquestionable\u00a0abilities\u00a0will take them back to the playoffs in 2017.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Main photo:<\/p>\n

\n
Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n