The Bucks are off to a 2-1 start on the year, and the East’s first POTW of 2025–26 is Giannis Antetokounmpo. He’s fresh off a three-game stretch where he led the NBA in RPG (16.0) and finished second in PPG (36.0). He was also 14th in the league in APG with 7.0 and shot 68.3% from the field, just outside the top 10 at 11th. The 20 rebounds he accrued on Friday in Toronto are the early-season high for any player.
But that’s not all in terms of superlatives for Giannis. For one, his 40 points on Sunday marked the 55th such game of his career, which ties Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s franchise record. That got him just over 100 points on the young campaign; factoring in his 48 boards and 21 dimes, he’s the first player in NBA history to begin a season with 100/40/15 in his first three contests. He also joins Luka Doncic, Russell Westbrook, and Oscar Robertson as the only players to open their seasons with three consecutive 30/10/5 stat lines. Of those players, he’s the only one who made at least 60% of his shots in each outing.
This is Giannis’ 28th Eastern Conference Player of the Week honors. He won it four times last season, as well as Player of the Month in January. Going back to his second MVP season in 2019–20, he’s been commended for his weeks at least three times per year, with the exception of 2021–22, when he only netted the award once.
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