Giannis bracing for hard grind

Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo believes winning this season’s NBA crown will be harder than ever, dismissing suggestions a championship victory will be diminished by the coronavirus shutdown.

As 22 teams prepare to head for Orlando for the NBA’s restart on July 30, some critics have argued that the four-month pandemic shutdown means there will forever be an asterisk against the eventual winners.

Antetokounmpo, however, is in the opposite camp insisting that the unique circumstances of the campaign make it the “toughest” NBA championship in history to claim.

“I feel like a lot of people say that there’s gonna be a star next to this championship,” reigning NBA MVP Antetokounmpo said on a conference call according to ESPN.

“I feel like, at the end of the day, this is gonna be the toughest championship you could ever win – because the circumstances are really, really tough right now. So, whoever wants it more is going to be able to go out there and take it.”

NBA teams playing in Orlando will be kept in a “bubble” at Disney World for the remainder of the season, with limited family contact during this time, according to reports.

Antetokounmpo believes that will only add to the challenge over the final months of the season.

“I feel like, as I said before, this is the toughest title,” Antetokounmpo said. “Obviously, you go somewhere without your family for four months, three months, and you haven’t played basketball for three-and-a-half, four months.”