Giannis Antetokounmpo has proved on numerous occasions that he is not one who shies away from speaking his mind regardless of the circumstances. Over the years, the “Greek Freak” has become a locker room leader and a pivotal piece in the game of chess to topple the reigning king of the NBA.
After getting the team back on track and reignite their Championship aspirations, Giannis once again has come up with a comment that only he is capable of. After encouraging his “overperforming” equipment manager, the 29-year-old has an encouraging message for Patrick Beverley.
Giannis Antetokounmpo labels Patrick Beverley “A-hole” in good way
After the win against the Clippers, Giannis Antetokounmpo heaped praise on veteran Patrick Beverley. Beverley secured a trade to the Bucks from the Sixers in last month’s trade deadline and so far, has found new life quite enjoyable in Milwaukee.
Praising the 35-year-old, Giannis said, “He’s one of those guys that — Sorry for my language — that you say, ‘he’s an Ahole.’ But when he plays on your team, like, ‘That’s my ahole.’ You know? And I love him. We love playing with him. He’s a leader, he knows how to play the game. He’s a winner.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo on Patrick Beverley:
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) March 10, 2024
“He's one of those guys that — Sorry for my language — that you say, 'he's an A-hole.' But when he plays on your team, like, 'that's my a-hole.' You know? And I love him. We love playing with him. He's a leader, he knows how to play the… pic.twitter.com/xvshYvWGzo
Since his switch to the Bucks, Patrick Beverley has fulfilled Doc Rivers’ expectations and now the franchise is in the top 5 defenses in the league since the All-Star break. The former Lakers guard is averaging 5.5 points per game, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in the limited playing time he is having with the team.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard pull Bucks out of slump
Since the resumption after the All-Star break in February, the Bucks have been one of the in-form teams in the divisions. Despite the Bucks being written off from the Championship race after Doc Rivers’ appointment, they were steamrolling the competition 6-0 but stumbled in two consecutive games against the Warriors and the Lakers. They needed to roar back coming into the Clippers game, and sure they did.
The “Cream City” team fashioned out a 124-117 win over the Clippers thanks to the dynamic duo of Giannis and Damian Lillard. Both of them scored over 30 points in the team’s win, with the Greek scoring 34 and Lillard scoring one more.
2-0 vs. the Clippers this week.#FearTheDeer pic.twitter.com/ZnXwmmj3Dj
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) March 10, 2024
Giannis’ 10 assists and 7 rebounds along with Lillard’s 11 and 7 in the same stats pulled the Bucks through. Damian Lillard has been in a rich vein of form recently and Patrick Beverley’s inclusion has done no harm in that as the duo has seemingly buried their hatchet.
Giannis who dropped a franchise history 64 points in December against the Pacers, has kept his scoring form going and is averaging 30.8 points per game while Lillard is scoring at a rate of 24.7.
On March 12, the Bucks will face another cross-conference opponent, the Sacramento Kings. For the Bucks to lift their first championship since 2021, the “Freak Time” partnership has to keep their forms intact, but the supporting cast must do better.
