“It’s like taking a homeless guy and then suddenly putting him in a 20,000 square foot home” - Giannis Antetokounmpo opens up on his experience transitioning to NBA and talks about his Nigerian connection
Giannis Antetokounmpo entered the NBA after coming from extremely humble beginnings. Before being introduced to what eventually became his passion, the Milwaukee Bucks star grew up in poverty in Greece.
As a young child, the two-time MVP was regularly on the street working with his mother as a merchant. The family did everything they could to keep a roof over their heads and food on their plates, but were still forced to go without those at times.
Thanks to a lot of hard work and determination, Antetokounmpo was able to turn things around for his family. He picked up the game late but still managed to get an NBA team to take a chance on him.
From there, he's become a generational talent in the eyes of many while also working towards making sure his loved ones never have to struggle again.
The 27-year-old recently spoke about his early life in the NBA during an interview with Esquire magazine. As everything changed in the blink of an eye, Giannis Antetokounmpo never lost the values he learned as a kid growing up in Greece.
"The transition was so quick that the mentality never changed. I wasn’t really known at the time, so it wasn’t like people were saying, 'You’ll make it to the NBA in two to three years.'
"It’s like taking a homeless guy and then suddenly putting him in a 20,000 square foot home. He doesn’t feel homeless because he’s in the house and all of that, but his habits and mentality are still the same."
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Giannis Antetokounmpo reveals funny NBA Draft night story
The moment that changed everything for Giannis Antetokounmpo and his family came back in 2013.
Despite being a raw prospect with a thin frame, the Milwaukee Bucks decided he was worth taking a flier on with the 13th overall pick. In hindsight, it's one of the best decisions the franchise has ever made.
In today's day and age, NBA players are known for their fashion sense off the court. Given that he did not have much growing up, this is not something Antetokounmpo was accustomed to in the early days.
Later on in the interview with Esquire, he spoke about draft night and how his agent yelled at him for showing up in sweatpants. In a frantic rush, Giannis Antetokounmpo's agent somehow managed to find a suit for his client to wear in time to go on stage with the commissioner.
"You know what’s the crazy thing? On my draft night I was about to wear sweats and my agent grabbed me and said, 'There’s no way. There’s never been a guy to wear sweats to the NBA Draft and you’re not going to be the first one.'
"Blah, blah, blah. So, he got me a suit, I forget which company it was, and I was one of the most well-dressed of the night."
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Year 10 💪🏾🙌🏾🔋 https://t.co/spn7ZbDndp
In nine seasons in Milwaukee, Antetokounmpo has played 656 regular-season games and has won one championship in addition to multiple individual honors.