How good is Giannis Antetokounmpo?
So good that Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd knows he may tire of being so good.
From Kidd’s question-and-answer session with ESPN.com’s Nick Friedell:
Q: When you look at Giannis’ career and what he’s already done, as a future Hall of Famer yourself, what is the one thing you want to impart to him as he makes his ascension?
A: Don’t get bored.
Q: How does somebody fight that?
A: When you become the best, it’s very few people who’ve been at the top of the mountain who haven’t gotten bored, and MJ is one of them. The great ones don’t get bored. The good ones do. So hopefully at the end of my coaching career, if there’s anything that I can leave with him, it’s when he’s at the top of the mountain, he doesn’t get bored.
Antetokounmpo is only 22 years old and already a top-five player in the NBA. His per-game numbers couldn’t be replicated in video-game settings. He’s become unguardable without developing an outside jumper. He’s the odds-on favorite to win the league’s MVP award this season.
With all this in mind, boredom is absolutely on the table. What takes many superstars their entire career to accomplish, he may do by the time he’s 23 or 24. What happens then?
In Antetokounmpo’s case, probably nothing.
He seems like a real gym rat, not unlike Kobe Bryant, which means he’s not only driven to be the best at an individual level, but he wants to win. And the Bucks aren’t even on the peripherals of the championship discussion yet. They’re at least a couple years away, and that’s assuming they bring in another high-end talent or hit on a healthy Jabari Parker.
And even if they win a title, Antetokounmpo’s interest in dominating doesn’t seem like it’ll fade. He gives off the air of a player who will fight to remain the best of the best once he reaches the top of the mountain.
