2x NBA MVP ‘Wants to Be Part of’ the Conversation This Season

In 2019 and 2020, Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo won two consecutive NBA MVP awards. Antetokounmpo earned these honors after finishing seventh and sixth in the MVP voting the prior two seasons. Though he has not been given the nod since 2020, Antetokounmpo remains one of the best players in the NBA. In each season since 2020, he has finished top five in MVP voting but has yet to win the award for the third time in his career. Recently, the 30-year-old revealed that he hopes to take home a third MVP award this season.

“Yeah, that definitely might put tears in my eyes,” Antetokounmpo told Yahoo Sports earlier this week. “I do want to be part of that conversation. It lets me know I was able to help my team, carry my team, solidified [us as a team].

“I’m not gonna lie, it definitely means something to me.”

Furthermore, the Bucks star opened up about the possibility that he may never win the MVP award again despite his growth as a player.

“At this point in my career, I had the conversation with my brother, I was like, man, it’s crazy to me. I had just come to a realization that I might never win another MVP,” Antetokounmpo told Yahoo Sports. “I’m having better years than the years I won it. But hey, the league is improving, guys are playing very, very well.”

2x NBA MVP ‘Wants to Be Part of’ the Conversation This Season

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s NBA MVP Case

Through 19 games this season, Antetokounmpo is averaging a league-leading 32.6 points, 11.6 rebounds, 6.6 assists, and 1.3 blocks. Furthermore, he is shooting 61.6% from the field. Additionally, despite their slow start, the Bucks are now 11-10 and own the No.5 seed in the East. This is almost exclusively due to Antetokounmpo’s on-court performance.

According to Fanduel, Antetokounmpo (+650) has the fourth-best odds to win MVP this season. Only Nikola Jokic (+150), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (+340), and Jayson Tatum (+550) have better odds. It is still a young season, but “The Greek Freak” is establishing himself as a legitimate MVP candidate once again.

If Antetokounmpo wins a third MVP award, he would become the tenth player in league history to do so.

The Last Word

There is a legitimate case for Antetokounmpo to win MVP again this season. He is making his presence felt on both sides of the court and is playing arguably the best basketball of his NBA career. However, as is usually the case in the NBA, Antetokounmpo has a lot of competition in his way. The biggest area that would help his MVP case is the Bucks’ success as a team. Though they have rallied and re-established themselves as a playoff contender, the team is still underachieving. At this rate, it will be difficult for Antetokounmpo to beat out players like Jokic, Gilgeous-Alexander, and Tatum for the award.

Regardless, Antetokounmpo and the Bucks are now in a good state. They are above .500 and will get Khris Middleton back on the court tonight against the reigning champion Boston Celtics. The Bucks are 0-2 against Boston and are looking to avoid a season sweep.