This player got real honest about guarding a former Finals MVP
It’s never an easy task when your head coach tells you before the start of a basketball game that your defensive assignment on the night is Giannis Antetokounmpo. Yes, that’s right, you are being told before a game you’ll have to try and stop a former regular season, defensive player of the year, and finals MVP award winner, all while he’s on a minutes restriction.
This is exactly the scenario New York Knicks forward Josh Hart experienced during the team’s win on Friday night. On a night when the Greek Freak came back after missing four games in a row, and the Bucks were losing six straight, Giannis was simply looking for blood in the water. Throughout 28 minutes, he scored 30 points, 15 rebounds, and eight assists, practically flirting with a triple-double.
Stopping a Freight Train
After the game, Hart was asked by reporters what guarding a guy like Giannis was like and how the approach to stop him during the game was tackled.
“We don't have OG, who is an extremely physical guy. We always put him on those matchups so with him out, I knew I had to kind of step up a little bit.”
Hart is right, the Knicks were without Anunoby during last night’s matchup, having originally been thought to come back after missing six straight games and the team’s entire road trip. Hart was given the toughest assignment, but he understood his physicality needed to be matched. He’d finish with 19 points, 15 rebounds, and seven assists, copying Giannis in flirting with a triple-double.
Growing and Showing
Hart received his second start in a row from head coach Mike Brown, having elected the NBA veteran over Mitchell Robinson, essentially switching outside of the double big-man lineup he once originally ran. Hart has been solid in his last two games, putting up 20.5 points, seven assists, and 11.5 rebounds. Although he might’ve received an assist at the free-throw line, Hart has been pretty difficult to stop himself.
It’s clear throughout the entire night, Antetokounmpo was looking to attack and be aggressive inside the paint. Having been given a restriction before the game and picking up two quick fouls, it’s no secret that whenever he touched the ball, he had one goal in mind: destroy the opposition.
Unfortunately for Milwaukee, they’d drop their seventh straight game, doing so for the first time in over a decade. As for New York, they’ll advance to the NBA Cup quarterfinals for the third year in a row.