Giannis Antetokounmpo throws down the Space Jam dunk

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s dunk Saturday night looked an awful lot like Michael Jordan’s dunk in Space Jam.

It seems like on a nightly basis, Milwaukee Bucks’ doing-everything-player Giannis Antetokounmpo puts up a highlight reel play of some sort. For this addition to the Greek Freak’s highlight reel, Antetokounmpo got some inspiration from Michael Jordan’s 1996 sports classic, Space Jam.

Antetokounmpo got the ball on the Bucks’ side of the court. Within four strides, the Greek Freak went from half court to the free throw line. As soon as he reached the free throw line, Antetokounmpo took off and elevated. With his right arm fully outstretched, he threw it down with one hand.

The big difference between the Antetokounmpo and Michael Jordan’s dunk in Space Jam is the defense (and the fact that he took off from half court). In Space Jam, Jordan took off from on top of one of the Monstars’ heads. As Jordan flew through the air, he was tackled by every player on the Monstars. Despite the odds, Jordan was still able to throw down the game winning dunk as time expired. Despite the excessive contact, there was no foul on any Monstars player.

Antetokounmpo had a much easier time. No Pacers’player made a serious effort to stop the Greek Freak. In fact, some Pacers players stopped playing and trying to distance themselves from Antetokounmpo. Only a trailing Paul George and C.J. Miles even attempted to stop him.

But nothing was stopping the Bucks’ superstar from getting the easy two points anyway. The Pacers took a timeout following the dunk. Cameras cut back to Antentokounmpo who jogged back to the Bucks’ bench. As the cameras cut to the bench, every Bucks player was all smiles. Roy Hibbert and Matthew Dellavedova both attempted to get high fives.

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Antetokounmpo is having the best year of his four-year career. The Greek Freak is averaging 23.5 points per game this season for the Bucks. Additionally, Antetokounmpo is averaging 8.7 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and 1.7 steals per game.