Chicago Bulls: There’s no one who can stop Giannis Antetokounmpo

A tough game for the Chicago Bulls surfaces on Nov. 14 on the road at the Fiserv Forum against the Central Division champion Milwaukee Bucks.

A key showdown between two Central Division foes is set to go down on Nov. 14, with the Milwaukee Bucks taking on the Chicago Bulls. Head coach Jim Boylen and the Bulls need to get off to a hot start to take down one of the title favorites in the NBA on Thursday night on the road.

Boylen is catching a lot of criticism right now, so this is a big game just to get this team rolling in the proper direction.

This does look like a matchup of two teams heading in opposite directions. The Bucks entered this game just ahead of the 7-4 Indiana Pacers in the Central Division standings, with their own record of 7-3. It wasn’t the best start that the Bucks could’ve hoped for, but they should remain at or near the top of the Eastern Conference standings for the entirety of the regular season.

The biggest reason why the Bucks will remain at the top of the East this season is the reigning NBA MVP and forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. Through 10 games played this season, the “Greek Freak” is averaging 29.7 points per game, 14.3 rebounds, and 6.3 assists. He is also adding 1.3 steals per game and 1.6 blocks to that mark.

There’s not much down low or on the wing that the Bulls have to contain the insane skill set of Giannis. His supporting cast that has weapons all over the place also won’t help the Bulls case in this game. A supporting cast that features the likes of center Brook Lopez, point guard Eric Bledsoe, and shooting guard Khris Middleton usually doesn’t make anything easier.

Granted Middleton is out right now while he’s dealing with a thigh contusion.

You’d figure that the best the Bulls could do here is outscore the Bucks and take advantage when Giannis hits the bench. Without Middleton in the mix at the moment, the Bucks are missing that star sidekick that helps Giannis out so much. And the Bucks let the former Virginia Cavaliers standout guard Malcolm Brogdon go over the offseason (signed with the Pacers). That leaves Giannis with a more exposed supporting cast than he had last season at least.

But what is making it more difficult to defend Giannis now is his improved offensive arsenal. He’s already averaging more assists and is shooting better from range than last season. While shooting roughly 31 percent from beyond the arc isn’t great, it’s much better for Giannis than last season. He’s also averaging about two more points per game than he did during his MVP campaign.

A still developing second-year center Wendell Carter Jr. and power forward Lauri Markkanen won’t be much to matchup against Giannis. But solid perimeter defense could go a long way to helping the Bulls draw additional turnovers.

Drawing turnovers is the one bright spot the Bulls can utilize to play at least solid defense. Giannis turned it over a combined 14 times in his three games played between these two teams last season. Exploit that, and the Bulls might be able to limit the damage at the very least.