Giannis Antetokounmpo taking his game to another level

MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo fills notebooks, and the words he writes are pragmatic and motivational.

The pragmatic: “Sprint back on defense and get matched with your guy. I’ve got to do that better.”

The motivational: “Walk by faith, not by sight.”

Antetokounmpo, 22, has two notebooks full now. “I started doing it my second year in the league,” the Milwaukee Bucks guard-forward-center told USA TODAY Sports. “Whenever I feel I need to know something, I write it down because you cannot always remember everything.”

The first-time All-Star — Milwaukee’s first since Michael Redd in 2004 — has been asked to do so much for the Bucks.

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“It just shows how special Giannis is — digesting all the information we’re giving him at his age,” Milwaukee coach Jason Kidd said.

Playmaker. Scorer. Passer. Rebounder. Defender. He leads the Bucks in scoring (23.5 points per game), rebounding (8.7 per game), assists (5.5 per game), steals (1.7 per game) and blocks (2 per game).

The 6-11 son of Nigerian parents who was born in Greece, Antetokounmpo is one of the most fascinating players in the NBA because of size, length, ability, skill set and potential. It’s not just his ability to take a pass at halfcourt, take one dribble and dunk that is impressive, it’s his ability to see the floor and create for a teammate.

“I have the ability to draw attention and make the right pass. Few guys can do that,” he said.

Antetokounmpo was selected with the 15th pick in the 2013 draft, and no one — not even Bucks general manager John Hammond or any other executive — saw this coming.

Well, maybe Antetokounmpo had a vision. “I definitely would dream about it,” he said. “I knew I might have the ability to do it with my skill set. But I knew I needed a lot of work and a lot of hours in the gym. I decided to devote myself and give everything I’ve got for the game and try to make it as far as I can.”

Work has defined Antetokounmpo’s progress from prospect to All-Star to superstar-in-the-making. “Some people never give everything they’ve got,” he said. “I take notes. I watch clips. I do whatever it takes to be where I want to be. I set goals. That’s it. Put in as much effort, time and dedication as possible.”

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich put a finer point on Antetokounmpo’s game earlier this season. “He’s not just an athlete anymore,” Popovich told reporters. “He’s not just a phenomenon with his length and athleticism. He’s learned how to play the game.”

Kidd and Bucks assistant coach Sean Sweeney, who spent last summer working with Antetokounmpo, have played a significant role in that development. When Kidd took over as coach 2014, he wanted to give Antetokounmpo more playmaking duties.

“I thought it was going to happen right away,” Kidd said. “We tried in preseason when we got here, and it didn’t work. He wasn’t ready, and that’s fine. We didn’t make a big deal about it. But we felt we had to come back to it at some point and see, and we came back to it last season just before the All-Star break. He was ready and ran with it. It shows his maturity and his growth. Give a lot of credit to Giannis.”

Now, Antetokounmpo has the ball in his possession more than any other Bucks player at 4.8 minutes per game, according to NBA.com/stats.

Antetokounmpo has the perfect coach in Kidd, who is one of the game’s great playmakers and will be in the Hall of Fame. Kidd shares his knowledge and wisdom.

“We want him to see things and communicate back to us,” Kidd said. “That’s one of his gifts. He can see things, and he’s picking things up. … There’s a lot of stuff going in in someone’s head. My job is to help with that. But in the end, he’s a sponge. You give him information, and he runs with it.”

Said Antetokounmpo: “I love having the ball and making plays.”

Injuries have slowed Milwaukee’s season. Forward Khris Middleton just returned from a hamstring injury but forward Jabari Parker’s season ended when he tore the ACL in his left knee last week. Making the playoffs won’t be easy for the Bucks (23-30, 11th place in the East).

But that does not take away what Antetokounmpo has done this season and what he can accomplish.

“I didn’t know I’d be playing at this level,” he said. “People tell me I’m playing good, but I believe I can do a lot better than what I’m doing right now.”