Photo Credit: Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports

Tracy McGrady Says Giannis Antetokounmpo Would Have Struggled In His Era: “If You Can’t Shoot, It’s Gonna Be Hard”

It’s no secret that the biggest weakness of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s game is his lack of shooting. He has only shot 432-for-1492 from deep (29%) over the course of nine seasons. He’s also a below-average free throw shooter, averaging 71.7% from the charity stripe for his career.

But still, Antetokounmpo has constantly been a ruthless scoring machine who could always storm his way down to the basket or bully defenders on the block. His height and length also allow him to create separation and tower over defenders which make virtually impossible to guard. 

His stats and accomplishments are more than enough evidence that he’s still a dominant player even without a consistent jumpshot. However, former NBA superstar Tracy McGrady is not certain that Antetokounmpo’s game, as presently constructed, would translate well back in his era.

Per The Big Podcast with Shaq:

”I think he would have struggled because of how closed up the paint was. It was tough offensively because the defense was so great.”

“If you can’t shoot, it’s gonna be hard. And Giannis’ game is predicated on coming downhill. It would have been tough to be who he is today, back then.“