Isiah Thomas on Giannis: 'He would dawg anybody in the 80s, 90s, 2000s, and 3020' / News - Basketnews.com

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Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the premier superstars in the NBA. The two-time MVP and perennial All-Star has been the cornerstone of the Milwaukee Bucks franchise for numerous years now and helped them get to the first NBA Championship in decades.

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Team:Milwaukee BucksPosition:PF, SFAge:27Height:211 cmWeight:98 kgBirth place:Athens, GreeceProfileNewsStatistics

Knowing all this and witnessing Giannis' greatness each season, fans and analysts around the world often wonder how he would have fared in the more physical times of the league before the defensive rules were eased in the early 2000s.

Would Giannis dominate in the 80s? Legendary Detroit Pistons point guard and Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas has his answer. "Absolutely, absolutely," he says.

"Let's be for real now. I remember in the 80s there was a guy by the name of Ralph Samson. Ralph Sampson and Hakeem Olajuwon," the Hall of Famer continued. "Before Ralph Sampson got hurt, I remember Bill Russell saying Ralph Sampson could be the greatest player ever because of his skill set, his ability to handle the ball, his ability to play around the basket, his ability to block shots."

"Giannis is today's Ralph Sampson. Dude, Giannis going around Oakley, Giannis going around all of them, he's dunking on them, he's bigger, he's faster, he's stronger," Thomas explained.

"You can talk all that stuff because you don't play anymore, you can talk all that stuff because you have grey hair and you're sitting on the sidelines, smoking cigars about what you used to do," the legendary point guard continued. "That dude would dawg you every single time yall stepped on the court."

"Now, you may hit him hard. Ok, after you hit him hard, you've got no game. Ok, if you hit me, and I'd be like 'ok, that's all you've got? You ain't got nothing but a hit? I'm getting ready to mess over you.'"

"Giannis, just like he's treating them now, he's bigger, faster, stronger, he'd be dunking on all of them left-handed. Just like Ralph Samson was dunking on them, Giannis would be doing the same thing," Isiah Thomas expressed.

"We've never seen a dude like this coming to this league. Give him his props, give him his credits. He would dawg anybody in the 80s, 90s, 2000s, and 3020 when we get there."

Several weeks ago, appearing on The Big Podcast with Shaquille O'Neal, another NBA Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady made a point that Antetokounmpo might not have been such a dominant force during his era as he is now.

"I think he would have struggled because of how closed up the paint was back then," McGrady said during the podcast. "It was tough offensively because the defense was so great and the paint was closed up."

"If you can't shoot, it's going to be hard. And Giannis' game is predicated on coming downhill," McGrady explained. "He's developed a little jump shot now, but I think it would've been tough for him to be who he is today back then."

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