Giannis Antetokounmpo Signs Supermax: How Milwaukee Bucks Star Became NBA's Best

Giannis Antetokounmpo is not going anywhere.

Consecutive MVP seasons have not been enough to get the Milwaukee Bucks through to an NBA Finals series to date, but the 'Greek Freak' is willing to stick with the project.

Amid mounting speculation a year out from unrestricted free agency, Antetokounmpo signed a five-year, $228million supermax extension on Tuesday.

"This is my home, this is my city," he wrote on Twitter, announcing the deal. "The show goes on, let's get it."

Antetokounmpo has been outstanding in Milwaukee, but there is work to do again now to finally land a championship ring – the Bucks have not reigned supreme since 1971.

We break down his career with the aid of Stats Perform data.

STILL IMPROVING

Antetokounmpo is now heading into his eighth year in the NBA, but his progress still shows no signs of slowing.

The 26-year-old has averaged more points and more rebounds per game with each passing season, developing from 6.8 and 4.4 in his debut 2013-14 season to 29.5 and 13.6 last term.

This is particularly impressive as head coach Mike Budenholzer has worked to manage Antetokounmpo's minutes. The forward played 6.3 minutes fewer in 2019-20 than two years previously yet averaged 2.6 points more.

Even the areas of Antetokounmpo's game that have been seen as weak - notably his three-point shooting - are gradually improving. He took aim from beyond the arc 4.7 times per gamelast season, up from 2.8, and made 30.4 per cent.

Milwaukee are increasingly dependent on the player, too, as he rises to the challenge. His plus/minus statistic last time out was a staggering 11.1 points per game. In 2017, when Antetokounmpo made the All-NBA Second Team, it was just 0.6.

The only real concern in the previous campaign was a drop-off in free throw efficiency, making just 63.3 per cent, but he visited the foul line more often than ever before (10.0 times per game). Those misses did little to damage his overall statistics.

LEAGUE LEADER

Giannis is great on the eye, but his MVP seasons were also built on these remarkable numbers and the way they compare so favourably to his rivals.

Antetokounmpo ranked fifth for points per game in 2019-20 - Houston Rockets guard James Harden leading the way with 34.3 - yet played fewer minutes per game than anyone else in the top 20. He was also still well clear of MVP runner-up LeBron James (25.3).

And the Bucks superstar was the only player to average 20.0 points and 10.0 rebounds, displaying his dominance on the floor.

Antetokounmpo made more field goals (10.9) than any other player, while only Harden went to the foul line more often (attempting 11.8 free throws).

That plus/minus statistic puts Milwaukee's main man head and shoulders above the rest of the league, too, with Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard second on 8.4 points per game.

PLAYOFF PROGRESS?

With Antetokounmpo so imposing in the regular season, his failure to inspire playoff success remains somewhat confusing.

Milwaukee will hope their offseason moves, most notably a blockbuster trade for Jrue Holiday, will improve the supporting cast, but Antetokounmpo also still has strides to make.

His points per game fell to 26.7 in the 2020 postseason - still impressive but a marked decline from the regular season. By contrast, Lakers great James boosted his points from 25.3 to 27.6 in the playoffs.

With the rest of the league playing their best basketball, Antetokounmpo is not quite the same difference-maker. His plus/minus was 3.0 points per game last season and sits at 2.0 for his career.

James' figure was 7.9, lifting his postseason average to 5.7.

In the regular season,  Antetokounmpo is able to perform in spite of his limited minutes, and regular complaints in the postseason have centred on Budenholzer's refusal to alter that strategy.

While the Bucks' top performer averaged 30.8 minutes in the postseason, just 0.4 up on the rest of the campaign, champions Los Angeles kept LeBron out there for 36.3 minutes  per playoff game, still the lowest such average of his career.

Between Antetokounmpo and Budenholzer, there is work to be done to ensure the team "make these years count", as the player wrote on Tuesday.