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PHILADELPHIA — Adem Bona didn’t mind too much that Giannis Antetokounmpo dropped a never-before-seen stat line in their latest matchup. He was excited to play against one of the players he idolizes, submitting a very impressive two-way performance in the Philadelphia 76ers' 126-113 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
“I knew how they were playing,” Bona said. “I knew I had to guard Giannis and I knew I had to bring the energy from the start 'cause he's a big guy, tough guy. He attacks the rim, so I had to put some pressure on him a little bit from the beginning of the game. I was really excited to play against him, too.”
The Greek Freak decimated the 76ers to the tune of 35 points, a career-high 20 assists and 17 rebounds. It was the first-ever game of 35 points, 20 assists and 15 boards and he did it with remarkable efficiency (12-19 from the field, 10-11 from the foul line). The injury-plagued Sixers were the perfect petri dish for such a wild statistical anomaly, even if the guy standing in front of him was extra eager to shut him down.
“I thought I was doing a pretty good job. And I looked up and I was like ‘Oh, okay,’” Bona said as he demonstrated how he looked up to see the scoreboard. “I guess I wasn’t doing as good of a job as I thought.”
Although Bona couldn’t match or prevent Giannis's incredibly historic production, he scored a career-best 28 points on 13-15 shooting, notching a feat that only 14 others have ever done. He knew Giannis was going off but adopted the best next-play mentality that he could.
“How do I lock in and go to the next play? I think I just do what I can do right now and the rest is gonna handle itself,” he said. “I try my possible best to do everything I can do to avoid getting a foul. I avoid sticking in my hand whenever he drives. I just try to do the next right thing.”
Adem Bona gives great effort guarding Giannis Antetokounmpo
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According to NBA tracking data, Bona matched up with Giannis for nine minutes of game time. Almost every time down the court, Bona would find the Bucks superstar and play him tightly. He'd bump teammates to other assignments if they were down the court first. Once Giannis got the ball, he did his very best to wall him up.
On possessions where Bona guarded Antetokounmpo, the Bucks superstar shot just 5-9 from the field and committed a turnover. Against all other matchups, he shot a combined 7-10. He got the 76ers rookie to commit a pair of shooting fouls but with the rest of the team combining for four, it illustrates how disciplined Bona was as the living freight train wearing No. 34 barreled into him time after time.
Antetokounmpo recorded nine assists with Bona as his defender but none of them came against defensive breakdowns. Although the Sixers needed to help early against arguably the best slasher in the NBA (as teams often do), Bona stayed between Giannis and the basket each time, watching as he assisted teammates with skip passes and dribble handoffs.
The Nigerian-born Bona looks up to Antetokounmpo, who comes from a Nigerian family. “I think you are probably gonna see a lot of Giannis in me — relentless, do everything for his team to win, hard-working,” Bona said when the 76ers drafted him. He had no better way to showcase it than against the superstar himself.
Although his efforts didn’t result in a Philadelphia win, Adem Bona gave it a fantastic effort — one that should inspire hope in his long-term viability as an NBA rotation player.
