MILWAUKEE -- Giannis Antetokounmpo was unanimously selected to the All-NBA First Team, the league announced Thursday, May 23, marking the first Bucks player to earn First Team honors since Sidney Moncrief following the 1982-83 season.
According to a news release from Bucks officials, the forward is just the fourth player in franchise history to garner All-NBA First Team honors, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Marques Johnson and Moncrief.
In his sixth NBA season, Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to the best record (60-22) in the NBA and the team’s most wins since the 1980-81 season, while setting new career highs in points (27.7, ranked 3rd in the NBA), rebounds (12.5, ranked 6th in the NBA) and assists (5.9) per game. He became just the ninth player in NBA history to average at least 25.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game.
Antetokounmpo also averaged 1.5 blocks per game -- the second-highest mark of his career -- and was named to the 2018-19 NBA All-Defensive First Team, as the Bucks were the top-rated defense in the NBA this season and held opponents to a league-low 43.3 field goal percentage. On the season, Antetokounmpo shot a franchise-best 57.8 percent (ranked 11th in the NBA) from the field and earned Eastern Conference Player of the Month honors four times.
In February, Antetokounmpo made his third consecutive start in the All-Star Game as he captained Team Giannis in the 68th NBA All-Star Game in Charlotte. Antetokounmpo became a starter after receiving the most player votes (269), tied for the second most media votes (99) and the second-most fan votes (4,375,747).
Antetokounmpo is joined on the All-NBA First Team by James Harden (Houston), Stephen Curry (Golden State), Paul George (Oklahoma City) and Nikola Jokić (Denver).
The All-NBA Teams were selected by a global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. The media voted for All-NBA First, Second and Third Teams by position with points awarded on a 5-3-1 basis. Voters selected two guards, two forwards and one center for each team, choosing players at the position they play regularly. Players who received votes at multiple positions were slotted at the position where they received the most votes.