"If you gonna lay it up, he's gonna send it to the parking lot!" - Jayson Tatum speaks on his dunk over Giannis Antetokounmpo

The Celtics superstar managed to get the best out the Greek Freak

© Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

The Milwaukee Bucks lost their Christmas Day duel against the Boston Celtics, leaving them in the #2 seed. It was a blowout in the second half, and the Bucks couldn't handle Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown going off. To add insult to injury Tatum even dunked on Giannis Antetokounmpo and in the eyes of many overtook his place in the MVP race.

The dunk

The play of the game came in the second quarter when Tatum drove to the lane and threw down a one-handed jam over Giannis, who was waiting in the paint and trying to block the Celtics superstar.

After the game, Tatum spoke with Malika Andrews about the dunk and explained why that is the only way to do it when going up against a rim protector of Antetokounmpo's level.

"You gotta attack the rim, and if you gonna lay it up, he's gonna send it to the parking lot. You gotta put pressure on the rim to call a foul or just try to make a play, and that's what I did," Tatum explained.

Tatum knows how prolific of a rim protector Giannis is, and trying to do anything but dunk the ball would probably end in a block. The Celtics' superstar learned that lesson years before.

The MVP race

It was not all about the dunk, as Tatum finished with 41 points (14-22 FG), 7 rebounds, and 5 assists, all while sealing the game in the third quarter by scoring 23 points in that period alone.

Giannis on the other side was solid, scoring 27 points (9-22 FG), with 9 rebounds, and 3 assists. However, this was far off his usual dominant form, as the Celtics' defense managed to keep him out of the paint.

When you look at their seasons so far, the case can be made for both Tatum and Antetokounmpo as the MVP favorites. After all, Giannis is averaging 31.2 ppg, 11.2 rpg, and 5.1 apg on the second-best team in the league, while Tatum is averaging 30.9 ppg, 8.1 rpg, and 4.1 apg on the best team in the NBA.

The likes of Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, and Joel Embiid, who are also having amazing seasons, are also worth mentioning. However, it seems these two guys are leading the pack, and the Christmas Day game put JT ahead of the Greek Freak. For now, at least.