In a pivotal second late in Activity 4 of the NBA Finals, Giannis Antetokounmpo appeared to defy what we know about physics.
The Bucks had just taken a two-point lead over the Suns with a leap shot by Khris Middleton, but Phoenix wasn’t heading away. Devin Booker lobbed a correctly positioned alley-oop pass to Deandre Ayton, who charged uncovered to the rim.
Ayton was just a number of inches absent from slamming down a match-tying dunk with 1:15 remaining when Antetokounmpo, who experienced been masking Booker before the move, leaped from many ft absent to deny a single of the Suns’ most dynamic offensive weapons at the rim.
Milwaukee went on to earn the sport 109-103 to even the sequence at two online games apiece. The teams will now travel back to Arizona for Game 5 on Saturday.
More: Entire recap of Bucks’ Sport 4 acquire from the Suns
The block may well not have been a video game-saver with even now over a minute to participate in, but it electrified the group in Milwaukee and despatched Twitter into a frenzy:
That block by Giannis may possibly have received them the sport
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) July 15, 2021
That block by Giannis just one of the best i at any time viewed
— Richaun Holmes (@Loaded_Holmes22) July 15, 2021
That Giannis block is 1 of the most remarkable defensive plays I believe I have at any time seen? The judgment in assistance, the rotation, the power of the guy he fulfilled at the best of his leap, the timing, the energy to stop Ayton from throwing it down on him.
Which is just unquestionably unreal.
— Sam Vecenie (@Sam_Vecenie) July 15, 2021
that giannis block was unbelievable. i can not get around it.
— 🦌 (@SnellSZN) July 15, 2021
If Bucks get it all, they gonna communicate about that Giannis block permanently.
— Ahmed🇸🇴 (@major_business_) July 15, 2021
Some commenced evaluating it to LeBron James’ chasedown block of the Warriors’ Andre Iguodala late in Activity 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. James prevented a layup that would have presented Golden Condition the guide. James’ Cavaliers wound up winning the recreation and the title. The second is so effectively-regarded that it has its possess Wikipedia webpage .
Even Iguodala himself joined in with the comparison.
Giannis Antetokounmpo’s block on Deandre Ayton at the rim will be remembered as 1 of the fantastic blocks in NBA Finals historical past. I haven’t read Mike Breen get that enthusiastic due to the fact the block from LeBron James on Andre Iguodala in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. pic.twitter.com/rT9dA01oBT
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) July 15, 2021
The Giannis block on Ayton tonight and previous year’s Bam Adebayo block on Tatum are two of the greatest and most clutch defensive performs in playoff history. LeBron chase down block naturally on the record as perfectly.
— Joe Yasharoff (@JYash) July 15, 2021
And that wasn’t even the initial Antetokounmpo block to be as opposed to James’ block all through this year’s NBA Finals. With at the very least two far more games to be performed, Antetokounmpo is putting with each other rather the defensive spotlight reel.