It's no secret that once a player gets painted with a brush of being a good or bad defender, that image doesn't fade - it remains the same as it did when it was first painted, regardless if the actual image changes, in reality.
Giannis' defense epitomizes the disconnect between fiction and reality.
His wingspan and ability to cover ground has given his defense superhuman connotations, where he's looked at as this omnipotent being on that end, which couldn't be further from the truth.
He's not his team's main paint protector, he doesn't shoulder the main defensive reps, he shows inconsistent effort and his intagibles on that end of the floor are rarely ever noticeable.
Over the last 4-5 seasons:
Only averages 1 block (which pales in comparison to the likes of AD, JJJ, Wemby, Gobert etc)
Hasn't once featured in the top-20 for most contested shots (at times even falling outside of the top-50)
Hasn't once featured in the top-40 for defending shots in the paint (again, often falling outside of the top-50)
Hasn't once featured in the top-40 for keep-in-front% volume (a measurement of how proficient a defender is at keeping their opposite from getting past them).
I know a lot of folks recklessly use the percentages he holds opponents to in the paint/at the rim, but the actual volume of those shots he's defending are far too low to take anything meaningful out of it, especially when Brook Lopez anchors the paint and is the one defending the majority of these attempts; Giannis can come in and pick and choose when to defend shots, often from the weakside when players are at their most vulnerable.
The equivalent would be hyping up a player's 3-pt percentage, but they only stand in the corner taking a fraction of the attempts that the best shooters do, who shoot a considerably higher volume and do it all over the floor.
The mark of a great defensive player has always been about being at the forefront of the defense, not someone who stands behind the frontlines. He's had players like Brook who've held down the paint for him; he's had players like Jrue who've been the connective tissue on the perimeter; he's had players like Allen, Carter, Crowder etc who've changed the momentum on that end of the floor and done all the dirty work.
In Jrue's last season in Milwaukee, the Bucks had the 4th ranked defense, and in the following season after he left, they ended up with the 19th ranked defense.
Funnily enough when they had a top-5 defense in 2023, Giannis only played 63 games, but the year after when they had one of the worst defenses, he played 73 games. The Bucks' defense got worse with him playing more games. They essentially had the same main rotation in both seasons, but replaced Jrue with Dame. Now, of course, there's a difference in defensive value and impact between Jrue and Dame, but if Giannis has been heralded as this great, DPOY-caliber player, why did he allow such a notable dropoff? Why didn't he plug the holes that were left exposed after Jrue left? He didn't have to carry such a burden on offense with Dame now on board, why couldn't he then do more at the other end?
It's time that cats stop using a fictive their imaginations created about his defense, and start treating it as it exists, in reality.
Giannis' defense epitomizes the disconnect between fiction and reality.
His wingspan and ability to cover ground has given his defense superhuman connotations, where he's looked at as this omnipotent being on that end, which couldn't be further from the truth.
He's not his team's main paint protector, he doesn't shoulder the main defensive reps, he shows inconsistent effort and his intagibles on that end of the floor are rarely ever noticeable.
Over the last 4-5 seasons:
Only averages 1 block (which pales in comparison to the likes of AD, JJJ, Wemby, Gobert etc)
Hasn't once featured in the top-20 for most contested shots (at times even falling outside of the top-50)
Hasn't once featured in the top-40 for defending shots in the paint (again, often falling outside of the top-50)
Hasn't once featured in the top-40 for keep-in-front% volume (a measurement of how proficient a defender is at keeping their opposite from getting past them).
I know a lot of folks recklessly use the percentages he holds opponents to in the paint/at the rim, but the actual volume of those shots he's defending are far too low to take anything meaningful out of it, especially when Brook Lopez anchors the paint and is the one defending the majority of these attempts; Giannis can come in and pick and choose when to defend shots, often from the weakside when players are at their most vulnerable.
The equivalent would be hyping up a player's 3-pt percentage, but they only stand in the corner taking a fraction of the attempts that the best shooters do, who shoot a considerably higher volume and do it all over the floor.
The mark of a great defensive player has always been about being at the forefront of the defense, not someone who stands behind the frontlines. He's had players like Brook who've held down the paint for him; he's had players like Jrue who've been the connective tissue on the perimeter; he's had players like Allen, Carter, Crowder etc who've changed the momentum on that end of the floor and done all the dirty work.
In Jrue's last season in Milwaukee, the Bucks had the 4th ranked defense, and in the following season after he left, they ended up with the 19th ranked defense.
Funnily enough when they had a top-5 defense in 2023, Giannis only played 63 games, but the year after when they had one of the worst defenses, he played 73 games. The Bucks' defense got worse with him playing more games. They essentially had the same main rotation in both seasons, but replaced Jrue with Dame. Now, of course, there's a difference in defensive value and impact between Jrue and Dame, but if Giannis has been heralded as this great, DPOY-caliber player, why did he allow such a notable dropoff? Why didn't he plug the holes that were left exposed after Jrue left? He didn't have to carry such a burden on offense with Dame now on board, why couldn't he then do more at the other end?
It's time that cats stop using a fictive their imaginations created about his defense, and start treating it as it exists, in reality.
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