The Story of Giannis Antetokounmpo: From Peddler to NBA Superstar
Its history has its origin 22 years ago on the other side of the Atlantic. His parents arrived in Greece in 1991 as illegal immigrants , looking for a less gloomy future than they envisioned in their native Nigeria. Giannis was born a year later. They worked as street vendors or picking oranges in the field. The mother became ill and the father looked for a job as soon as it came out. With the little money there was not enough to support the five children in the family.
The basketball player had to take to the streets to earn his food. Together with his four brothers, he would put himself in the ditch to sell anything to get some coins. "We were always together on the street, selling a toy, a watch. We earned 10 dollars and it was good because that day we did not starve and we could go home, "he said. Thanasis, the brother who was two years older than he was going up and down the Acropolis, told him: "Let's make something of our lives, so we never have to repeat this again".
From school he went to work. There was no time for games . A hard childhood, but without traumas. In those long hours of street struggling for survival the competitive beast that is today was incubated. "Well, I'm not going to say it was really bad, because obviously it was hard. I had to do things, my brothers had to do things, to bring food home. But it was beautiful. That has made us more workers, work harder and if I could go back I would not change that in my life, because that moment in my life made me who I am today. By doing those things I became more hardworking and became more realistic and I knew that I am here for a mission, "he said.
Giannis carried the sport in the genes. His father had been a professional footballer in Nigeria and his high jumper mother . But he and Thanasis were dazzled by basketball. It was a fulminating love and they did not resist. When they started, they had to share sneakers.
Spiros Velliniatis, a former player, toured the suburbs of Athens looking for talent among immigrants who crammed cement courts and ramshackle bars. On one of his trips he was shocked to see Thanasis. "I saw him walking down the street and I immediately knew he had the physical attributes to play basketball. But it was not just that, he had street intelligence, "he says. Soon he would meet Giannis. He followed them for two years and, aware of their situation, he promised them that basketball could get them out of poverty.
"He gave us money and he did not have money. I had to borrow to give to us. He loved us. I do not know where that love came from. We did not even know him, "Giannis recalled.
Spiros struggled to convince the parents, but eventually brought the brothers to Filathlitikos. The club of the Greek second division agreed to pay the family 500 euros a month so that the boys did not have to continue working in the streets. "Spiros is a great man, like a second father to me. I think without him, I would not be here, "confided the today Bucks player.
In his new team, Giannis left the street acrobatics and learned to read the game. If they asked him he said he was a center, although he knew how to do almost everything. He used to win rings with amazing dunks and he handled the ball with the presence of an outside player. In 2012, a video tape of poor quality came to the office of Willy Villar, sports director of CAI Zaragoza. The man was stunned and went to the Filathlitikos pavilion to see that pixilated promise live.
"We did two workouts. The first, domain of ball, movements in the post and shot. He did all of 10 and it was left to see if he understood the game or was more a 3 × 3 player. He scored 44 points and captured eight rebounds in a game . My legs began to shake and I called the president. We had to sign him immediately and we did it for four years, "Villar recalled. "He is a player of the XXII century," he added.
The manager still remembers the eighteen-year-old's long fingers. From the beginning of the wrist to the end of the middle finger there are 27 centimeters. "Those fingers looked like a leg to me. They were huge, we did not measure them , but I did see that they were something out of the ordinary. They looked like tennis rackets! And if you add to that the size, it's a stop-and-go machine, "said Villar.
The fame of Giannis rose like foam. His videos on YouTube caused delirium on social networks, microphones asked for his testimony and the NBA high-level came to Greece to see how much shone the new European jewel. Danny Ainge (Boston Celtics), Daryl Morey (Houston Rockets), Sam Presti (OKC Thunder), among others, tried to move the chip for him . In a few months he went from anonymity to the NBA draft. Giannis only managed to pose with the red shirt of the CAI.
The Milwaukee Bucks selected him in the 15th place. His elegant two-piece suit disengaged with his face as a distraught teenager. He was a boy in the body of a man. When his first NBA coach, Larry Drew, saw his ability on television he calculated that he was 1.85 meters tall. It fell short by more than twenty centimeters. I could not believe that someone with that height would bounce the ball like that.
Giannis entered beating marks. With 19 years and twelve days he became the youngest holder in the history of the Wisconsin team. "Someday I will tell my grandchildren," he said. In his first year he grew five centimeters and chiselled his skinny body with long hours of gym . He did not cut himself before crowded sands or millions of people following him on television. He played in the lustrous NBA parks as if he were playing with his brother in the brave neighborhood they grew up in. Resounding dunks, luxury assists, plugs everywhere. Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard or Kevin Garnett were posterized under his huge figure.
With the loaded wallet he did not lose his head. The mournful life of the super athletes had no place in a head that was still very aware of the days when there was nothing to eat. He bought a Play Station 4 to not feel so alone in his apartment, but a few days later he felt guilty for having spent $ 400 on something like that and resold it to the team's assistant, Nick Van Exel. He saved that money for the arrival of his family, a month later. Of the two million dollars of his contract, he tried not to tear up and he managed with the 190 dollars a day that the franchise gave him as viaticum. To furnish his apartment, he had to borrow from his teammates.
Only the fame obtained allowed him to stop being a ghost in Greece. The "Helens", eager to conquer Europe again, rushed the papers to give him the nationality. Such a talented guy could not be a pariah. However, in a society in which the extreme right has been consolidated, the decision caused stinging in some sectors. "If you give a chimpanzee at the zoo a banana and a flag, is it already Greek?" Lashed the leader of the Golden Dawn party, Nikolaos Michaloliakos. The athlete, true to his style, did not make any fuss.
In 2014, Jason Kidd left the bench of the Nets and signed for Milwaukee, in large part, to be able to lead the Greek. He banished the classical figure from the base and ordered him to take the initiative and make the imbalance. Because of his height for the position, some compare him with "Magic" Johnson.
Giannis has become almost indefensible. If he is paired with a lower player, he takes him to the paint and if he defends him, a player of his build leaves him behind with his Olympic strides. He crushes almost without jumping, he knows how to use the board and throw the float. Improving medium and long distance shooting is your pending task.
On the other side of the court, he can defend the explosive and fast Russell Westbrook, the powerful LeBron James or the corpulent DeMarcus Cousins. It bounces, blocks, punches balls, goes to the floor if necessary. It is the engine of the team and has made the city believe again in a squad that was bogged down.
"There are special players that we meet: LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan. There are different players that are rare and I think that Giannis is one of those species of unique players that are not common, that we will be able to enjoy for a long time, "Kidd said about his run.
Year after year their numbers were improving. However, its appearance was last season. He got his team in the playoffs, he hit the chair by pulling the Raptors out of the race and he just bowed to the Isaiah Thomas Celtics. He led his team in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks . His brutal numbers put him as the first player in league history to finish in the Top 20 in each of the major statistical categories. He appeared in the Eastern Conference quintet in the All Star and in the second ideal team of the year at the end of the course. Milwaukee made a new contract according to his status: 100 million for four years, the same as LeBron James charges in Cleveland.
Before starting this campaign, the retired Kobe Bryant challenged him: "I want you to be an MVP". And Antetokounmpo is taking it very seriously, signing some scandal forms and showing himself as one of the most dominant players of recent years. According to the NBA Stats site, no player in history accumulates their numbers in the first four league games : 147 points (36.75 average), 43 rebounds (10.75) and 21 assists (5.25). It has, in addition, an incredible 65.9% in field shots, 2.25 steals and a cap.
"It's a nightmare for anyone," said teammate Khris Middleton. "It's not just his size and physique, but he has an energy and passion for the game that makes it fun to watch him play," said Steve Clifford, a Hornets coach, one of the teams that has suffered this season . The figure of the Warriors, Kevin Durant, went further: "It's all strength. I have never seen anyone like him. He could become the best player in history if he wanted to. He's my favorite player, by far. "
Giannis does not believe it. He says he is not yet up to LeBron James. Work hard and do not make big promises. For him his motto is still what he had on the streets of Greece: "Day by day".
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| The Story of Giannis Antetokounmpo: From Peddler to NBA Superstar |
The basketball player had to take to the streets to earn his food. Together with his four brothers, he would put himself in the ditch to sell anything to get some coins. "We were always together on the street, selling a toy, a watch. We earned 10 dollars and it was good because that day we did not starve and we could go home, "he said. Thanasis, the brother who was two years older than he was going up and down the Acropolis, told him: "Let's make something of our lives, so we never have to repeat this again".
From school he went to work. There was no time for games . A hard childhood, but without traumas. In those long hours of street struggling for survival the competitive beast that is today was incubated. "Well, I'm not going to say it was really bad, because obviously it was hard. I had to do things, my brothers had to do things, to bring food home. But it was beautiful. That has made us more workers, work harder and if I could go back I would not change that in my life, because that moment in my life made me who I am today. By doing those things I became more hardworking and became more realistic and I knew that I am here for a mission, "he said.
Giannis carried the sport in the genes. His father had been a professional footballer in Nigeria and his high jumper mother . But he and Thanasis were dazzled by basketball. It was a fulminating love and they did not resist. When they started, they had to share sneakers.
Spiros Velliniatis, a former player, toured the suburbs of Athens looking for talent among immigrants who crammed cement courts and ramshackle bars. On one of his trips he was shocked to see Thanasis. "I saw him walking down the street and I immediately knew he had the physical attributes to play basketball. But it was not just that, he had street intelligence, "he says. Soon he would meet Giannis. He followed them for two years and, aware of their situation, he promised them that basketball could get them out of poverty.
"He gave us money and he did not have money. I had to borrow to give to us. He loved us. I do not know where that love came from. We did not even know him, "Giannis recalled.
Spiros struggled to convince the parents, but eventually brought the brothers to Filathlitikos. The club of the Greek second division agreed to pay the family 500 euros a month so that the boys did not have to continue working in the streets. "Spiros is a great man, like a second father to me. I think without him, I would not be here, "confided the today Bucks player.
In his new team, Giannis left the street acrobatics and learned to read the game. If they asked him he said he was a center, although he knew how to do almost everything. He used to win rings with amazing dunks and he handled the ball with the presence of an outside player. In 2012, a video tape of poor quality came to the office of Willy Villar, sports director of CAI Zaragoza. The man was stunned and went to the Filathlitikos pavilion to see that pixilated promise live.
"We did two workouts. The first, domain of ball, movements in the post and shot. He did all of 10 and it was left to see if he understood the game or was more a 3 × 3 player. He scored 44 points and captured eight rebounds in a game . My legs began to shake and I called the president. We had to sign him immediately and we did it for four years, "Villar recalled. "He is a player of the XXII century," he added.
The manager still remembers the eighteen-year-old's long fingers. From the beginning of the wrist to the end of the middle finger there are 27 centimeters. "Those fingers looked like a leg to me. They were huge, we did not measure them , but I did see that they were something out of the ordinary. They looked like tennis rackets! And if you add to that the size, it's a stop-and-go machine, "said Villar.
The fame of Giannis rose like foam. His videos on YouTube caused delirium on social networks, microphones asked for his testimony and the NBA high-level came to Greece to see how much shone the new European jewel. Danny Ainge (Boston Celtics), Daryl Morey (Houston Rockets), Sam Presti (OKC Thunder), among others, tried to move the chip for him . In a few months he went from anonymity to the NBA draft. Giannis only managed to pose with the red shirt of the CAI.
The Milwaukee Bucks selected him in the 15th place. His elegant two-piece suit disengaged with his face as a distraught teenager. He was a boy in the body of a man. When his first NBA coach, Larry Drew, saw his ability on television he calculated that he was 1.85 meters tall. It fell short by more than twenty centimeters. I could not believe that someone with that height would bounce the ball like that.
Giannis entered beating marks. With 19 years and twelve days he became the youngest holder in the history of the Wisconsin team. "Someday I will tell my grandchildren," he said. In his first year he grew five centimeters and chiselled his skinny body with long hours of gym . He did not cut himself before crowded sands or millions of people following him on television. He played in the lustrous NBA parks as if he were playing with his brother in the brave neighborhood they grew up in. Resounding dunks, luxury assists, plugs everywhere. Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard or Kevin Garnett were posterized under his huge figure.
With the loaded wallet he did not lose his head. The mournful life of the super athletes had no place in a head that was still very aware of the days when there was nothing to eat. He bought a Play Station 4 to not feel so alone in his apartment, but a few days later he felt guilty for having spent $ 400 on something like that and resold it to the team's assistant, Nick Van Exel. He saved that money for the arrival of his family, a month later. Of the two million dollars of his contract, he tried not to tear up and he managed with the 190 dollars a day that the franchise gave him as viaticum. To furnish his apartment, he had to borrow from his teammates.
Only the fame obtained allowed him to stop being a ghost in Greece. The "Helens", eager to conquer Europe again, rushed the papers to give him the nationality. Such a talented guy could not be a pariah. However, in a society in which the extreme right has been consolidated, the decision caused stinging in some sectors. "If you give a chimpanzee at the zoo a banana and a flag, is it already Greek?" Lashed the leader of the Golden Dawn party, Nikolaos Michaloliakos. The athlete, true to his style, did not make any fuss.
In 2014, Jason Kidd left the bench of the Nets and signed for Milwaukee, in large part, to be able to lead the Greek. He banished the classical figure from the base and ordered him to take the initiative and make the imbalance. Because of his height for the position, some compare him with "Magic" Johnson.
Giannis has become almost indefensible. If he is paired with a lower player, he takes him to the paint and if he defends him, a player of his build leaves him behind with his Olympic strides. He crushes almost without jumping, he knows how to use the board and throw the float. Improving medium and long distance shooting is your pending task.
On the other side of the court, he can defend the explosive and fast Russell Westbrook, the powerful LeBron James or the corpulent DeMarcus Cousins. It bounces, blocks, punches balls, goes to the floor if necessary. It is the engine of the team and has made the city believe again in a squad that was bogged down.
"There are special players that we meet: LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan. There are different players that are rare and I think that Giannis is one of those species of unique players that are not common, that we will be able to enjoy for a long time, "Kidd said about his run.
Year after year their numbers were improving. However, its appearance was last season. He got his team in the playoffs, he hit the chair by pulling the Raptors out of the race and he just bowed to the Isaiah Thomas Celtics. He led his team in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks . His brutal numbers put him as the first player in league history to finish in the Top 20 in each of the major statistical categories. He appeared in the Eastern Conference quintet in the All Star and in the second ideal team of the year at the end of the course. Milwaukee made a new contract according to his status: 100 million for four years, the same as LeBron James charges in Cleveland.
Before starting this campaign, the retired Kobe Bryant challenged him: "I want you to be an MVP". And Antetokounmpo is taking it very seriously, signing some scandal forms and showing himself as one of the most dominant players of recent years. According to the NBA Stats site, no player in history accumulates their numbers in the first four league games : 147 points (36.75 average), 43 rebounds (10.75) and 21 assists (5.25). It has, in addition, an incredible 65.9% in field shots, 2.25 steals and a cap.
"It's a nightmare for anyone," said teammate Khris Middleton. "It's not just his size and physique, but he has an energy and passion for the game that makes it fun to watch him play," said Steve Clifford, a Hornets coach, one of the teams that has suffered this season . The figure of the Warriors, Kevin Durant, went further: "It's all strength. I have never seen anyone like him. He could become the best player in history if he wanted to. He's my favorite player, by far. "
Giannis does not believe it. He says he is not yet up to LeBron James. Work hard and do not make big promises. For him his motto is still what he had on the streets of Greece: "Day by day".