Giannis Antetokounmpo speaks out about MVP award

Giannis Antetokounmpo got an interesting notion with regards to his current Most Valuable Player hardware.

In an interview with Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes, Antetokounmpo admitted that he cares winning for another MVP award despite having two already from back-to-back seasons of 2019-2020.

“Look, I will never try to create a narrative about the work I put in and maybe that might hurt me because I believe the last five years I’ve been the MVP,” Antetokounmpo told Haynes. “Do I want a third MVP? Hell f— yeah I want a third one. I am extremely competitive. I try to make my team successful. That’s what I get paid for. That’s what I’m here for. I’m never going to be one who discredits anybody else’s work. That’s not who I am as a person. And I will never beg for an MVP award that I believe I deserve. I’m very proud that I’m able to play at an MVP level because that means I’m making my team very successful. That’s the goal.”

Antetokounmpo further believes that he won his back-to-back MVP nods in two worst seasons of the five-year stretch he believes he should have been crowned as the league’s best player. 

“Can I say this? Two of the MVPs I won in the last five years, those were my two worst seasons [in that span],” Antetokounmpo told Haynes. “Go pull up the stats… But it doesn’t even matter. I’ve tried to avoid this conversation at all costs. I don’t ever want to drive a narrative and have my kids seeing their father whining about an award because, at the end of the day, it’s all a part of history. I don’t want to win that way.”

The Greek sensation acknowledges the idea that fan and voter’s fatigue could have been a factor on why he is yet to receive another MVP plum. Despite this, he vowed to remain consistent as long as he can and just allow his work to bring out the best result possible.

“Maybe people are just tired of me. And look, I’ll be tired of myself too. I’m not going to lie,” Antetokounmpo added. “Mariah [Riddlesprigger], my significant other, is tired of me too. But at the end of the day, I will try to be consistent, I will try to be as dominant as I can and I will try to help my team be successful for as many years as I can and in as many years as my legs allow me to be. Eventually, they’re going to be like, ‘Man, give this guy this MVP because goddamn, he’s still here.’ That’s what’s going to happen.”

For now, with playoffs set to start for the next few days, Giannis is focusing himself for another big goal: a championship.

With a 58-24 regular season record, he carried the Bucks to the best win-loss card of the league this season. There still remains a room within his competitive self that he wants to chase another MVP honor, but a second title in the last three years with Milwaukee is the much clearer goal for now at his side.

“I’m extremely blessed to have two MVPs,” Antetokounmpo said. “I could pull out a lot of facts and data to make a case for myself on why I feel people are discrediting my game, but I’m here to win a championship and that goal will never change. I will never go out here to create a narrative and say, ‘I’m this, I’m that, I’m the most handsome guy and you should look this way because I’m the coolest.’ No, that’s not me.

“I really believe from the bottom of my heart that eventually I’ll get another one. Until then, I’m trying to get that second ring.”