NBA

Giannis triple-double helps Bucks topple Thunder in NBA Cup final

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Joe Lyons
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Joe Lyons Sports Editor

Joe Lyons is a sports writer and basketball expert for Basketball Insiders. Joe has a keen eye for the betting markets within the NBA and a great passion for the game of basketball. also been published by Nottingham Forest FC, working with the academy and senior teams to produce content on matchdays. He formerly covered the Premier League and EFL as an on-site reporter during the 2020/21 season for Prost International. He is an expert in a range of other sports including soccer, horse racing darts and American football. Joe specialises in long form SEO content alongside news, tips and betting.

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Sports Editor

Updated18 Dec 2024

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Giannis Antetokounmpo added the NBA Cup to his illustrious resume as the Milwaukee Bucks saw off the Oklahoma City Thunder in Las Vegas.

Giannis wins NBA Cup MVP with brilliant triple-double

26 points, 19 rebounds and ten assists saw the ‘Greek Freak’ dominate a hotly anticipated match-up with Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who failed to create a dent.

Gilgeous-Alexander struggled from the field, shooting 8/24 and 2/9 from downtown and that was the story for Oklahoma City as a whole in Vegas.

Among the media panel, Antetokounmpo was a unanimous winner of the MVP award and his impressive individual season continues to go from strength to strength.

The 30-year-old is averaging an incredible 32.7 points, 11.5 rebounds and 6.1 assists which has him firmly in the conversation to win what would be a third regular season MVP in 2025.

As per the best online sportsbooks, Giannis holds the third-best MVP odds at +700 behind only Nikola Jokic (+100) and Gilgeous-Alexander (+225).

WATCH: Giannis shines in Vegas as Bucks trump Thunder

Bucks will feel like they’re finally off the mark after years of frustration

Tuesday’s triumph marked probably the biggest moment for the Milwaukee Bucks franchise since they won the title in 2021.

In 2022 they were sent home by the Boston Celtics in the playoffs before two consecutive first-round exits in 2023 and 2024, which left some wondering what direction the team were headed.

The cons of losing Jrue Holiday seemed to significantly outweigh the pros of adding Damian Lillard and the Bucks looked stuck, unable to make any significant roster moves and low on draft capital.

Mike Budenholzer was fired and Adrian Griffin was hired then fired until Milwaukee settled on Doc Rivers, who has still lost more games in charge of the Bucks than won.

The team started the season 2-8 but have since gone 13-3 to turn their year around in a flash and this could be the fire in the belly needed to kickstart a strong playoff run.

Or this could just be papering over the cracks like it was for the Lakers and the Bucks are headed for another first-round exit? We’ll see.