The NBA in-season tournament has been a massive success, though for many fans, it can still be improved. For one, the point differential rule has been a major talking point, with several players even expressing displeasure over it. If you ask Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, though, he won’t change anything at all about the competition.
During his media presser on Wednesday ahead of the NBA in-season tournament semifinals, Antetokounmpo was asked what he would change about the so-called NBA Cup. Interestingly, he emphasized that he loved everything about it.
“Nothing, I enjoyed the process,” Antetokounmpo responded, per CBS Sports. “… If it was just a regular season game, who would’ve cared? I think it brings more attention to our game. I didn’t think there is anything to tweak. I think it’s great so far.”
For what it’s worth, Antetokounmpo is hardly alone in his sentiment about the excitement that the NBA in-season tournament has brought. Even Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant admitted after their quarterfinal loss to the Los Angeles Lakers that he has now converted to being a fan after initially not liking it.
Similar to Antetokounmpo’s thoughts, Durant loved the intensity and atmosphere it produced, noting that it “felt like a playoff game.”
Damian Lillard Not Like Giannis Antetokounmpo
While Antetokounmpo loved everything about the NBA in-season tournament, his Bucks teammate Damian Lillard is different.
When asked the same question, there were a couple of things that immediately came to Lillard’s mind. First off, he’s not a big fan of the in-season tournament court designs. Several fans were as annoyed as him by the often distracting court colorways, so it’s not really a big surprise.
Not to mention that several players previously complained about the quality of the courts.
Most importantly, however, Lillard said he wants the cash prize to improve in order to further motivate other teams and players to take the competition seriously. So far, the players from the championship team in the IST are eligible to receive $500,000 each.
It remains to be seen what adjustments the NBA will make in the future iterations of the tournament, though it’s safe to say it has gotten off to a great start.
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