Giannis stars as Bucks beat Thunder to win NBA Cup

They have now won 13 of their last 16 games, and Antetokounmpo, who led the Bucks to the 2021 NBA title, indicated he considered it only a stepping stone.

“It’s great for our team,” said Antetokounmpo, who was named MVP of the tournament. “The last 15 games we’ve played, we’ve competed. We’ve played team basketball.

“I’m so proud of this group,” he added. “Coming out of halftime we know we have 24 minutes to go, we came out in the third quarter, we set the tone. We played great team basketball.”

‘Not done’

The Bucks held the Thunder to just 14 points in the third quarter — their lowest points total in a period this season.

“Most importantly we are competing defensively,” Antetokounmpo said. “That’s who we are. That’s who we’re going to continue to be — and the job’s not done.”

Unlike the rest of the Cup matches, the final doesn’t count toward the regular-season record, nor do the players’ performances count in their career stats.

But the trophy does come with a financial reward with each player on the winning team set to pocket more than $514,971 — a significant chunk of money for the younger players and lesser lights on the team.

Thunder players will take home $205,988 apiece for the runner-up finish. But they’ll head back to Oklahoma City disappointed with one of their worst shooting performances of the season.

The Western Conference leaders — who went 3-1 in group play before beating Dallas in the quarter-finals and Houston in the semis — connected on just 33.7 percent of their shots from the field and made just five of 32 — 15.6 percent — from three-point range.

They had emerged from a fast-paced first quarter with a 28-27 lead.

The nip-and-tuck continued in the second quarter and the tension was evident when Milwaukee’s Andre Jackson Jr and Oklahoma City’s Isaiah Hartenstein received matching technicals after a heated exchange.

After a first half that featured nine lead changes the Bucks led 51-50, but Milwaukee opened the third with back-to-back three-pointers from Taurean Prince and Lillard and began to roll.

News