As LeBron James' storied career nears its conclusion, fans and pundits have wondered who would step up and take the mantle from him as the torch bearer of the NBA. Some could see Dallas Mavericks wunderkind Luka Doncic as one with the potential talent and charisma to not only become the face of the league, but also threaten James' modern-day GOAT status if he continues his meteoric rise with the Mavs. But are we sleeping on what Giannis Antetokounmpo can still do?
Giannis Antetokounmpo just led the Milwaukee Bucks to their first NBA Finals win in nearly 50 years. The Greek Freak has been extra freakish in these last two games, putting the Bucks on his back with consecutive 40-point performances.
Yes, it's only been one game. But the Bucks look just as capable of winning the NBA championship over the Phoenix Suns if Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to play like he's the best player in the world.
Let's say the Bucks pull off the amazing comeback from down 0-2, with Giannis carrying the entire load for Milwaukee. That would give Antetokounmpo one of the signature NBA Finals performances in history, while also giving him an NBA championship ring at 26 years old.
Guess how many rings LeBron James and Michael Jordan had at age-26? None. Not only would Giannis Antetokounmpo have a ring earlier than the two potential GOATs, he'd also do it in a manner that LeBron James wasn't able to accomplish – winning with his first team.
King James obviously had a much worse team during the mid-aughts than Giannis Antetokounmpo has with the Bucks today. Just check out the Cleveland Cavaliers roster in 2007 if you need a quick reminder. But the Bucks' supporting cast has been pedestrian at best, and a net-negative at worst as their franchise player buoyed them single-handedly across the first three NBA Finals games.
LeBron James on the other hand could never get it done by himself in Cleveland. Just like Giannis, he won two MVP trophies by age-25 season, But his first ring came in his age-27 season, in his second year playing alongside two other first-ballot Hall of Famers with the Miami Heat. You could argue Giannis Antetokounmpo doesn't even have a single one, depending on how you feel about Khris Middleton.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has shown an extra gear he's capable of reaching when his team needed him most. We've limited what we believe he can be just by virtue of his (very few) limitations, but we often forget he's absolutely incredible in nearly every other area, and only getting better. We haven't even seen peak Giannis just yet, and that's just a scary thought.
Giannis in Game 2 and Game 3 is basically telling us to bring in the construction crew, blow the roof out and raise whatever we thought his ceiling was. This is ridiculous ridiculous stuff.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) July 12, 2021
Now of course, this is only contingent on Giannis Antetokounmpo's ability to continue playing at a godly level and bring home the title to Milwaukee. Anything less sends him right back down to earth. He'd also have to continue to pile on rings as his career progresses. Getting his foot in the door is one thing, but staying afloat in the race for greatness is a huge battle of attrition.
Can Giannis Antetokounmpo truly make some noise in the GOAT debate? Given how much talent there is in the NBA today, it doesn't seem likely. Just being able to enter the stratosphere of the all-time greats is a prestigious spot to be in, one that just a few players ever get to reach. But the fact that there's a greater than zero chance is already quite a feat.
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