(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
The NBA is a short-memory league, and everybody is quick to forget.
Just three years ago, Giannis Antetokounmpo was locking up a championship by playing on both ends of the floor, swatting shots, and scoring 50 in the NBA Finals.
Now, Kevin Garnett doesn’t seem to be so high on him anymore.
Talking on his show with Paul Pierce, the legendary power forward doesn’t think of Giannis as a top-three player in the Eastern Conference (via All The Smoke Productions & ClutchPoints).
Paul Pierce: “Is Giannis the best player in the East?”
Kevin Garnett: “You can’t say that with [Joel] Embiid over there, and with Jayson Tatum over there… He’s probably like the 4th best player in the East?”
Agree or disagree?
(via @allthesmokeprod)pic.twitter.com/jbfl079aNK
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 26, 2024
Garnett stated that he wasn’t taking Giannis over Jayson Tatum or Joel Embiid, to which Pierce replied that it was a very, very close call.
Instead, Garnett believes that Giannis is probably the fourth-best player in the East right now, even though he couldn’t even name three.
Truth be told, Giannis Antetokounmpo might not be the best when it comes to fundamentals or basketball IQ, but his impact on the court is much bigger than Tatum’s.
The Milwaukee Bucks would probably be a lottery or a Play-In team without Giannis, while the Boston Celtics would still likely be a top-four seed without Tatum.
Granted, that’s not a shot at Tatum but rather praise for Giannis.
The league boasts as much talent as it’s ever had, and the gap between the best and the fourth-best player isn’t particularly wide.
Then again, it seems like Giannis Antetokounmpo will have to show people what he’s all about when he returns to full strength next season.
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