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Chicago Bulls legend and NBA Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen doesn't believe Giannis Antetokounmpo can lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a championship this season.
On Da Windy City Podcast with FanSided's Mark Carman, Pippen said Antetokounmpo's lack of a perimeter game will ultimately hurt him and the Bucks once the playoffs start since half-court scoring is at a premium.
“No, not yet, I don’t think so. But I haven’t seen him for a while and from what I hear, he’s been working on his jump shot. But I don’t think so. In terms of where they left off, I don’t think he’s really got it there yet,” Scottie Pippen said when asked if Giannis Antetokounmpo has what it takes to win a title with the Bucks this year.
“When you talk about winning a title, when you talk about playing in the NBA Finals, when you talk about making big shots with seconds on the clock and being able to take those shots with confidence, I just don’t see him being ready right now for that.
“I know that he’s made some great strides. He is still one of the top players in the game, but in terms of his outside play, he’s not ready to carry his team to a title.”
Antetokounmpo only shot 30.6 percent from beyond the arc for the Bucks before the 2019-20 season was suspended in March. Since the floor shrinks and the game slows down in the playoffs, Pippen doesn't see Giannis dominating opponents as he does in the regular season. Teams can pack the paint against Milwaukee and force Antetokounmpo to beat them from the perimeter.
The Bucks have the best record in the NBA for the second straight season and Giannis could very well win his second consecutive MVP Award. However, it's going to be interesting to see if the Greek Freak can atone for his poor play in Games 3-6 of the 2019 Eastern Conference Finals against the Toronto Raptors.
To recall, Milwaukee took a 2-0 lead over Kawhi Leonard and the Raptors, only to watch Toronto win four games in a row to win the series and the overall championship over the Golden State Warriors.
