"Better than intimacy" - Giannis Antetokounmpo goes viral for wild quote about winning

Throughout his career, Giannis Antetokounmpo has cemented himself as one of the best basketball players of his era. With two MVP awards, nine All-Star selections, a Defensive Player of the Year award, and a Finals MVP trophy to go with his 2021 ring, he has done it all.

Heading into the final stretch of the season, which he and the Bucks hope will lead to a deep postseason run, Antetokounmpo spoke with The Athletic's Sam Amick to discuss a wide range of topics, including the MVP race.

While Antetokounmpo is averaging 30.2 points per game, the second most of any player in the league, along with 12.0 rebounds per game, he trails Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for the MVP award.

However, Antetokounmpo doesn't care about it. He made it clear that his ultimate goal was winning another title.

"Listen, the MVP discussion is great," Antetokounmpo said on Tuesday. "I’ve been in the MVP discussion, what, like the last seven years? It’s a great compliment. But at the end of the day, winning is a different feeling. I was able to live it once.

"I don’t know if people feel like it counts or it doesn’t count… but winning is winning, so is the NBA Cup. It was like, wow, this feeling, man, it’s like — it’s better than intimacy."

"Is anyone noticing?" - Bucks coach Doc Rivers questions why Giannis Antetokounmpo isn't receiving more consideration for NBA MVP

Giannis Antetokounmpo is having a stellar year individually. In addition to being the league's second-leading scorer, his 12.0 rebounds per game and 60.0% field goal percentage have him comfortably in the top 10 in both categories.

Antetokounmpo has also shown a new layer of his game with improved efficiency on midrange jumpers. In early March, he was second in volume from the 15-19 foot range, trailing only DeMar DeRozan in volume and Kevin Durant in efficiency.

Although Milwaukee is fifth in the Eastern Conference, with the red-hot Detroit Pistons just half a game behind, Doc Rivers wants to know why Antetokounmpo hasn't received more MVP consideration.

"Yeah, I always say now, ‘Is anyone noticing?’" Rivers said on Tuesday, via The Athletic. "He just keeps getting these numbers, and you just never hear (anything). With MVP, you never hear Giannis’ name. I guess it’s voter fatigue. I don’t know what it is, but he’s ‘Groundhog Day.’ He does it every night, and I guess that’s boring. But not for me.”

After the 108-106 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Monday, Antetokounmpo and the Bucks will be back in action on Wednesday when they face the Denver Nuggets as they look to build momentum for the postseason.