The Philadelphia 76ers could not contain Giannis Antetokounmpo in their Tuesday night matchup. The Milwaukee Bucks star posted 31 points, 16 rebounds, and some heavy admiration from Doc Rivers.
The Sixers head coach was vocal on what he loves about the Greek Freak, making a point to indicate his fearlessness at getting to the free throw line despite not being particularly proficient at it.
Via Marcus Hayes of the Philadelphia Inquirer:
“I don’t like gushing over another guy, but what he did last year was amazing. … They lost back-to-back games in the playoffs, he struggled at the free-throw line. He goes on the road. He has 20,000 people counting [the seconds before his free throws] — hell, we were counting when we played him — and then he takes that to the last two games. He’s the most dominant player in the NBA. He makes free throws. He was defiant, almost.”
While Rivers wasn't singling anyone out with his take, mainly heaping praise at Giannis Antetokounmpo, the comment feels like an indirect shot at a certain Ben Simmons. The Sixers All-Star's hesitance to attack the basket was evident in their failed playoff run last season.
Giannis was similarly mocked for his free throw shooting in the postseason, even hearing countdowns from opposing crowds to make fun of how slowly he takes them. And yet the Bucks star stayed aggressive, getting rewarded with an NBA title and one of the most unexpected Finals wins in recent memory.
“That’s what I liked about him. He’s just defiant,” continued the Sixers coach on Giannis. ‘I know I’m not making free throws. I’m still going to keep driving. I’m still going to keep attacking. I’m going to still step up to the free-throw line and eventually I’m going to make them.’”
That same aggression is what Doc Rivers definitely wanted out of Ben Simmons as a similarly reluctant shooter. But not everybody can be as “defiant” as Giannis Antetokounmpo, after all.
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