The Journey

You can just never forget where you came from.

-Giannis Antetokounmpo

Mitchell Zarkis Inquiry 2 ARTS 346

S I N N A I G O P M N U O K O T E T AN 4 #3

GROWING UP IN GREECE

Giannis was born in 1994, in the nation’s capital, as were three of his four brothers: Thanasis (born 1992), Kostas (born 1997), and Alex (born 2001).

But as the children of Nigerian immigrants, they were never officially recognised as Greek citizens, meaning they were stateless.

Giannis’ Family

Giannis’ mother Veronica was a babysitter while his father, Charles, worked as a handyman. Giannis and Thanasis contributed to the family’s meagre income by selling bags and sunglasses on the city’s streets.

“Sometimes I would go to school, no breakfast,” Giannis told Adrian Wojnarowski’s Woj Pod. “Sometimes, not every time. I would come back, sometimes no food. Now I have to go to practice.

I would come back from practice at 11 pm and that is when I would have my first meal of the day.”

They suffered multiple housing evictions, while xenophobic attitudes further segregated the young family from Greek society.

“The real NBA? The NBA I see on TV?”

Giannis at the 2013 Draft

Giannis playing basketball in Greece

2013 DRAFT When he was taken 15th over by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2013 draft, he was considered a bit of a mystery — a long, versatile, under-scouted forward.

Years later, Antetokounmpo is handsdown the best player from the class and one of the best players in the entire league. He is the two-time reigning MVP and won Defensive Player of the Year in 2019-20.

GREEK Scan for highlight video

FREAK

CAREER STATS YEAR

TEAM

GP

MIN

PTS

FG% 3PT%

REB

AST

STL

BLK

2021

BUCKS

42

32.6

28.8

53.2

28.2

11.2

5.8

1.0

1.4

2020

BUCKS

61

33.0

28.1

56.9

30.3

11.0

5.9

1.2

1.2

2019

BUCKS

63

30.4

29.5

55.3

30.4

13.6

5.6

1.0

1.0

2018

BUCKS

72

32.8

27.7

57.8

25.6

12.5

5.9

1.3

1.5

2017

BUCKS

75

36.7

26.9

52.9

30.7

10.0

4.8

1.5

1.4

2016

BUCKS

80

35.6

22.9

52.1

27.2

8.8

5.4

1.6

1.9

2015

BUCKS

80

35.3

16.9

50.6

25.7

7.7

4.3

1.2

1.4

2014

BUCKS

81

31.4

12.7

49.1

15.9

6.7

2.6

0.9

1.0

2013

BUCKS

77

24.6

6.8

41.4

34.7

4.4

1.9

0.8

0.8

CAREER

BUCKS

631

32.5

21.4

53.2

28.7

9.3

4.6

1.2

1.3

2021 Championship Giannis with Finals MVP Trophy

It’s fitting then that eight years later, Giannis has put the Bucks on the basketball map. It was Milwaukee 105, Phoenix 98 in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, clinching the Bucks' second NBA championship, ending a 50-year drought. At 26, and just a few weeks removed from what appeared to be a catastrophic knee injury, Giannis submitted one of the greatest Finals performances in NBA history, capping it off with a 50-point, 14-rebound effort in Game 6.

What a game. What a wild, twisting, unpredictable game.

The Bucks jumped out to a 29–16 first quarter lead, and Phoenix, looking beleaguered after three straight defeats, appeared ready to fold. The Suns rallied in the second, with Chris Paul springing to life. The

teams traded runs in the third quarter, closing it tied at 77.

In the fourth, it was too much Giannis. Antetokounmpo made eight free throws in the previous two games. He connected on 17—on 19 attempts—in Game 6. His 50 points was the seventh 50-point game in Finals

history. It tied Bob Pettit for the most points scored in a Finals clincher. And it elevated Antetokounmpo into the rarified air of Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon, the only players to win an MVP, a Defensive Player of Year award and Finals MVP.

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