Giannis Antetokounmpo wins 2019-20 NBA MVP Award

The NBA will announce that Giannis Antetokounmpo is the 2019-20 league Most Valuable Player.According to ESPN Adrian Wojnarowski, the Milwaukee Bucks forward won the award over Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James and Houston Rockets guard James Harden.

The award is Antetokounmpo's second straight, putting him on the long but elite list of players to win consecutive MVPs, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Moses Malone, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan, Steve Nash, Tim Duncan, LeBron James and Stephen Curry.

Of those players, only Nash did not win an NBA championship. Antetokounmpo, 25, is seeking his first. The Bucks were knocked out of the NBA playoffs in 2020 by the Miami Heat in the second round of the playoffs.

Antetokounmpo also won Defensive Player of the Year this season, marking an achievement that places him in an even more elite company. Only Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon have won MVP and DPOY in the same season.

Antetokounmpo average 29.5 points, 13.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists, a steal and a block this season. He shot 55.3 percent from the field and 30.7 percent from 3-point range. He also increased his 3-point output, hitting 1.4 shots from behind the arc, doubling his previous career run from last season.

The Bucks earned the top order in the Eastern Conference playoffs, with a league-best 56-17 record, but did not make it to the conference finals. Antetokounmpo missed the fifth and final game of the series against the Heat as he lost in the first round due to an ankle injury.