NBA All-Star player Giannis Antetokounmpo spoke openly on Saturday of his Nigerian origins and of eking out a living trading on the Athens streets long before his $100 million deal with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Giannis appeared on stage at the Onassis Cultural Centre with his 24-year-old brother Thanasis, who plays for the Spanish club MoraBanc Andorra, and they talked about their painful struggle in their early days in Greece where their parents had arrived as immigrants.
“We are the products of two cultures, Greek and Nigerian, and we took the best of both worlds,” Giannis said.
“There are many people who have gone through tough times, but you still have to look for the light. Our parents taught us not to be selfish, to be honest and sincere,” Thanasis added.
“I started out playing football as my father was a football player back in Nigeria. But basketball was my life and I worked hard. Now that I’ve made it in the NBA it is hard to stay on top so you have to work harder,” Giannis said.
He continued: “You have to test your limits and I believe I want to be the best player of all time and I know I can get there.”
The 22-year-old added he was determined to help other young people in both Greece and in Africa to get ahead.
“Greece loves us because we are good guys. We promote Greece wherever we go… I know nothing else but Greece. I have never been to Nigeria. You are not born a Greek, you become a Greek,” Giannis said.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is dreaming big. He wants to beat the United States wearing Greek team colors.
Over a decade ago, on Sept. 1, 2006, the United States men’s basketball team lost to Greece during the semifinals of the 2006 FIBA World Championship. Since then, the United States has not lost a single game, re-establishing its international basketball dominance by taking gold in 2010 World Championship and the 2014 World Cup, as well as in the 2008, 2012, and 2016 Olympics.
But if Giannis Antetokounmpo has anything to say about it, Greece will once again be the team to put a stop to the American run. After an exhibition game in Athens on Sunday, Giannis told the crowd that he wants to lead the way in the next Greek victory over the United States.
“I’ll be the next one to beat them. I’ll be waiting for them somewhere,” the Milwaukee Bucks star said before leading a team in an exhibition game involving Greek and foreign players before 15,000 fans at the Athens Olympic Arena on Sunday.
Antetokounmpo made his boast in front of three retired veterans of the Greek national team that was the last to beat the U.S., in a 101-95 upset in the semifinals of the 2006 World Championships.
On Sunday, the 2005-06 Greece team – European champions in 2005 and runners-up to Spain at the 2006 Worlds – played a side which included brothers Giannis and Thanassis Antetokounmpo, and American Euroleague star Kyle Hines. The Greek veterans, mostly in their late 30s and early 40s, prevailed 92-91 thanks to better shooting and plenty more steals, with the crowd rewarded with some spectacular dunks from the Antetokounmpo brothers.
The New York Knicks’ Kristaps Porzingis took part in the event last year, which was held in an open-air court in Athens’ biggest high school. This is the fourth year the brothers are holding this event.