Giannis Antetokounmpo's Case to be the Best Player in the NBA

Today I'm continuing my new series in which I'll be analyzing the top players in the NBA to determine who is actually the best player in the league. I broke down Joel Embiid's profile in my last article, so I'm moving on to Giannis Antetokounmpo today.

Using my philosophy, which I outlined in my Damian Lillard piece (check that out here), I will analyze Giannis' analytical profile to see whether or not he is worthy of being in the "best player in the league" conversation.

Giannis Antetokounmpo's Profile

Here is Embiid's entire profile, including basic information about him, stats from the 2020-2021 season, and stats from the last three regular seasons and playoffs, along with my breakdown of the numbers I'll be presenting.

Basic Information

Age: 26

Height: 6'11

Weight: 242 lbs.

Wingspan: 7'3

Position: Power Forward

Team: Milwaukee Bucks

2020-2021 Stats

Here is Giannis Antetokounmpo's analytical profile from the 2020-2021 season, with percentile rankings for each metric. Below the graphs, you can find his stats for this past season. To be transparent, my statistical database includes 522 players who all played at least 250 minutes this season.

Here is a graph including metrics that attempt to measure specific skills using box score data included in the graph above.

Regular Season Per 100 Possessions Stats:

Points: 40.1

Rebounds: 15.7

Assists: 8.3

Steals: 1.7

Blocks: 1.7

2P%: 63.6% (20.5 2PA)

3P%: 30.3% (5.2 3PA)

FT%: 68.5% (13.6 FTA)

TS%: 63.3%

Regular Season Impact Metrics:

OBPM: 6.2

DBPM: 2.6

BPM: 8.8 (2nd)

Back Picks BPM: 6.5

RPM: 5.07 (6th)

RAPTOR: 6.9 (9th)

LEBRON: 5.95 (T-2nd w/Rudy Gobert)

CraftedPM: 6.68 (2nd)

Playoff Per 100 Possessions Stats

Points: 39.3

Rebounds: 16.7

Assists: 6.7

Steals: 1.3

Blocks: 1.5

2P%: 64.2% (22.9 2PA)

3P%: 18.6% (4.3 3PA)

FT%: 58.7% (12.8 FTA)

TS%: 59.9%

Playoff Impact Metrics

OBPM: 6.7

DBPM: 3.2

BPM: 9.9

Back Picks BPM: 6.2

(Some metrics not included due to the lack of measurements)

Multi-Year Regular Season and Playoff Performance

Here are Giannis Antetokounmpo's stats and impact metrics from the last three regular seasons and playoffs.

2019-2021 Regular Season Per 100 Possessions Stats

Points: 41.1

Rebounds: 17.9

Assists: 8.4

Steals: 1.7

Blocks: 1.8

2P%: 63.6% (21.2 2PA)

3P%: 29% (5.3 3PA)

FT%: 68.4% (14 FTA)

TS%: 63%

2019-2021 Regular Season Impact Metrics

OBPM: 6.6

DBPM: 3.6

BPM: 10.2

LEBRON: 9.71

(Some metrics not included due to the lack of multi-year measurements)

2019-2021 Playoff Per 100 Possessions Stats

Points: 38.5

Rebounds: 17.7

Assists: 7.1

Steals: 1.3

Blocks: 1.9

2P%: 61% (21.3 2PA)

3P%: 26.7% (5.1 3PA)

FT%: 60.4% (13.9 FTA)

TS%: 59.2%

2019-2021 Playoff Impact Metrics

OBPM: 6.4

DBPM: 3.3

BPM: 9.6

LEBRON: 5.40

(Some metrics not included due to the lack of multi-year measurements)

Analytical Breakdown

Now that we're done with the numbers portion of this piece, I will give my thoughts on Giannis Antetokounmpo's game based on my philosophy which I discussed at the beginning of the Damian Lillard piece.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of my favorite players in the NBA because his skill set is extremely unique and doesn't make any sense at all. He's a 6'11 do-it-all big man who can initiate offenses as the primary ball-handler while also being effective as a roll man and on post-ups.

He's also a tremendous defender who moves well on the perimeter but shines as a rim protector. Simply put, he is elite on both ends of the floor and has a very good argument to be the best player in the NBA.

Giannis' offensive skillset is truly unbelievable. This season, he ranked in the 99th percentile in my scoring metric because he had a 99th percentile scoring rate and an 89th percentile true shooting percentage. He does most of his damage around the basket, where he is one of the best finishers in the NBA.

This season, 45.1% of his shot attempts came from 0-3 feet. On these attempts, he shot an earth-shattering 83.7%. His elite shooting around the basket is the reason why he ranked in the 99th percentile in my finishing metric, which measures a player's ability to finish plays by scoring around the basket and hitting threes.

Another strength of his is his passing ability. He averaged 8.3 points per 100 possessions this season and ranked in the 91st percentile in my passing metric. I don't think he is an elite passer because he still struggles with inaccuracy while on the move, but he's pretty good at creating shots for his teammates with his rim gravity.

His elite scoring and his ability to create shots for his teammates make him a phenomenal creator. This season, he ranked in the 98th percentile in my creation metric. I get that his lack of shooting hurts his portability. Still, his scoring and the resulting gravity of his drives make him an extremely valuable offensive player, even in the playoffs.

His defensive prowess adds to his value in the playoffs. He may not be the most versatile defender, but over the last four seasons, he has a playoff D-LEBRON of 2.10. His D-LEBRON ranks fifth among players who have played at least 1,000 minutes in the previous four playoffs combined.

This postseason, Giannis proved that he is one of the greatest players in NBA history. Before this season, the biggest issue with him was how limited he was offensively past the first round of the playoffs. He wasn't as limited as Ben Simmons has been, but his underwhelming shooting and the lack of versatility in his scoring repertoire held him back against tougher defenses.

This wasn't an issue this year as he led the Bucks to a championship while dominating on both ends of the floor. In my opinion, he was the best player in the playoffs, putting up a BPM of 9.9, which ranked fifth among all players in the postseason. His playoff dominance climaxed in game six of the Finals as he dropped 50 points on 74.9% true shooting to eliminate the Phoenix Suns.

Giannis Antetokounmpo isn't a perfect player. He still struggles to shoot from outside the arc, and his passing isn't always on point. Nevertheless, his elite defense and all-around offensive skill set make him a special player. After this postseason, I no longer have doubts about his championship equity. His warts as an offensive engine simply don't matter when he attacks the basket relentlessly.

Playoff performance and championship equity are the most essential parts of a player's evaluation, and Giannis excels in this category. He’s had a BPM of 9.9 and a LEBRON of 5.14 over the last three postseasons, which puts him among the best in the league in terms of playoff impact. If he can lead the Bucks to a championship while Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday play inconsistently, then what's the limit for him? I say there is none. He's an all-time great player and should be treated as such.