As most had earlier anticipated, Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo bagged Defensive Player of the Year. For his part, however, the 25-year-old was quick to throw the credit back to his Bucks teammates for their vast contributions in making Milwaukee the best defensive team in the entire league.
Among all his teammates, though, Giannis singled out one man he wants to share the trophy with:
“I’m gonna send him [Brook Lopez] half of the trophy because he definitely deserves it as much as I do,” Giannis said, via Eurohoops. “Brook’s my guy.”
It's hard to argue against Antetokounmpo here, especially considering how dominant Brook Lopez has been on the defensive end for the Bucks. The 32-year-old veteran has emerged as one of the league's best shot blockers, averaging a career-best 2.4 swats per contest.
Giannis also spoke about some of his other teammates and how they have been pivotal for the Bucks throughout the campaign:
“Brook just makes the job easier for everybody. He’s always behind us,” he added. “Bled (Eric Bledsoe) picks up everybody, makes every guard’s night a tough night. We can talk about Wesley Matthews guarding the best player of the other team every single night. We can talk about everybody. A mix of all that creates a great defensive team.”
Despite Antetokounmpo being modest here, it is clear that he has been the league's best defender this season and is very much deserving of the award. The Bucks star is now in a position to win both DPOY and MVP in the same season, potentially entering elite company with Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon as only the third player in NBA history to have achieved this feat.
Of course, as great as these awards are for Giannis, he's now focused on a bigger goal: winning his first NBA title.
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