Giannis Antetokounmpo speaks out about frustrating encounter with paparazzi during his honeymoon
Milwaukee Bucks superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo got married to Mariah Riddlesprigger just last summer. They had a destination wedding which took place in the two-time MVP's home country of Greece and was attended by close friends and family.
While his wedding was kept private, he encountered paparazzi during his honeymoon. The Bucks champion shared with his brother Thanasis Antetokounmpo on Friday's episode of the "Thanalysis Show" how he was approached by people wanting to take his photos and how he responded to them.
According to him, this occurred as he and his wife were taking a stroll down a street on a popular island.
"These photographers, because I got married two or three days ago, they tried to capture pictures of me," Giannis Antetokounmpo said. "I'm always trying to be polite and I understand what they're trying to do and I don't care about the pictures which is invasion of privacy for sure, I don't care. I said 'guys you can capture your picture, but then just let me walk.'" (37:44-38:07)
Giannis continued by saying that the paparazzi continued to follow him and take photos while yelling out his name. Meanwhile, he and his wife were trying to figure out where to go as they had gotten lost, which meant Giannis' attention was divided.
According to Giannis, this led to people saying that he did not even acknowledge the photographers or he was not open to the media.
Giannis later clarified that this was partially true. He said that he was willing to speak with media members during postgame interviews and other appropriate moments. However, he indicated that it's a different situation when he is enjoying a private day with his family.
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Giannis Antetokounmpo clears the air on the incident where he walked out of a postgame press conference
The Milwaukee Bucks were eliminated from playoff contention by the Toronto Raptors in the 2019 Eastern Conference Finals. Despite the loss, the Bucks still faced the media. Giannis Antetokounmpo sat with teammate Khris Middleton to answer questions, one of which came from reporter Malika Andrews.
After Andrews asked her question, Giannis remained quiet for a second before wordlessly walking out, leaving Middleton to address her query.
On Friday's episode of the "Thanalysis Show," the Greek Freak finally got to clear the air. (Start at 43:33)
"That game was obviously high stakes," Giannis said. "We were up 2-0, they came back and beat us four straight. And then after the game, somebody approached me in the locker room that there was this article that Giannis was leaving Milwaukee."
Giannis Antetokounmpo seemed confused by this and it all happened before they went out for the postgame press conference. He said that when Andrews asked her question, he was zoned out.
He also said that he was much younger back then and that he perhaps did not know how to properly deal with that media attention. Giannis added that he felt bad about what happened and that he ended up texting Andrews to apologize.
In 2019, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the first-seed Milwaukee Bucks faced the second-seed Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Bucks won the first two games at home but the Raptors, led by Kawhi Leonard, rallied to win the next four.
The Raptors went on to face and beat the Golden State Warriors in the Finals to win the championship that year.