(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
There is a lot riding on Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks this season, according to Kendrick Perkins.
On Friday morning’s First Take, Perkins said that Antetokounmpo has the most pressure to win the championship this season.
That’s because, according to Perkins, Antetokounmpo has “a lot of blood on his hands when it comes down to this organization.”
The former player claims that Antetokoumpo has been a part of major changes made to the team lately and that has ratcheted up the need for him to win.
.@KendrickPerkins says Giannis is under the most pressure to win a ring this season pic.twitter.com/OIFT9qLc4z
— First Take (@FirstTake) February 23, 2024
Perkins laid out his claims plainly, reminding viewers that Antetokounmpo called on the front office to fire former head coach Mike Budenholzer last season.
He then pleaded with them to hire the next coach Adrian Griffin and do whatever was necessary to get another superstar on the roster.
That all led to Griffin’s hiring, the loss of Jrue Holiday, and the acquisition of Damian Lillard.
Now Griffin has been replaced by Doc Rivers, Holiday is playing for the league’s best team, and the Antetokounmpo-Lillard combination isn’t working as well as some had hoped.
Antetokounmpo has repeatedly gotten exactly what he wanted, according to Perkins, and now he has to win because of it.
Coming into this season, the eight-time All-Star said that winning the Finals was his singular goal and everything the team did was in service of that.
Now the season is halfway over and the Bucks remain the third team in the East with a 3-7 record since Rivers’ hiring.
The team has gotten better offensively but their defense is still lacking and they haven’t conquered their conference as they planned.
Antetokounmpo and his team have a lot to prove but they’re running out of time to prove it.
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