As of July 20th, the Milwaukee Bucks are the reigning champions of the NBA. This means many things, so I will go over that. But first let us discuss just how bad of a game this was for everyone not named Giannis.
pc: via Fox Sports
The Suns had one of the worst quarters I have ever seen in the finals in the first quarter of this game. The Bucks then proceeded to have an even worse second quarter. The first half was absolutely horrendous, the only guy playing decent being Giannis, who finished the first half with 17 points. The second half was the important half for both teams, and both teams continued to struggle. However, Giannis put up 20 whole points in the third quarter alone, and at this point showed that he was there to win this game, nothing more, nothing less. Despite his performance thus far the game was still close, as everyone else on both teams struggled. CP3 had a couple of flashes of solid play, and Bobby Portis played very well for his standards, but as a whole both teams were still struggling. Devin Booker played pretty bad, which is a bummer because of how much I like the guy, but I would be lying if I said I was rooting for the Suns in this game. In the end both teams sucked, but Giannis scored 50 points and put up an excellent defensive effort, effectively winning a championship clenching game on his own.
I want to go over all of the things that this series either changed or set in stone. Giannis is now the undisputed best player in the world. Giannis is officially a top five power forward of all time, surpassing Charles Barkley for the fifth spot. He is a top 20-25 guy of all-time, and is already a first ballot hall of famer. Giannis did not win with a superteam, he is the only top 20 guy on the team (I guess Middleton is debatable, but probably not) and the only lottery pick on the team is Brook Lopez. Mike Budenholzer is still not a great coach, but this did save his job for years to come. Both Middleton and Holiday are inconsistent second and third options. Giannis will likely go down as a top 10-15 player of all time, maybe even breaking into the top ten. CP3 will retire ringless, and this will be regarded as an all-time choke job from the guy. The last thing and last Giannis thing, this will go down as a top 10 finals performance of all-time.
I want to give you where each of these teams can go in the future. Obviously the Bucks will look to repeat, and while I doubt they are the favorites, I think they are probably a top-three favorite to win it again. Giannis may get his third MVP next season, and I would put money on it that he wins more championships in Milwaukee. As for the Suns, they have a few more things to get through than the Bucks do. Chris Paul won't for sure be there next year, but if he is obviously they will remain elite. If he does go I think they are still a playoff team, but I doubt they make it back to the finals without him. They probably need to keep building around Booker, as the guy could use another serious star beside him if they want to make another finals push. They have a good core and a great coach, I think they remain in the contender category for years to come.
As for now though, congratulations to the Milwaukee Bucks and especially Giannis.
Until the Jazz win the title next year, the Bucks will be your reigning NBA champions.