Giannis Antetokounmpo

Early Life

The son of immigrants from Nigeria, Antetokounmpo was born in Athens, Greece on December 6, 1994. Three years earlier, his parents had moved from Lagos, Nigeria, to Greece, leaving behind their firstborn son, Francis, with his grandparents. Even though Antetokounmpo and three of his four brothers were born in Greece, they did not automatically qualify to receive full Greek citizenship. For the first 18 years of his life, Antetokounmpo had no papers from Nigeria or Greece.

Antetokounmpo grew up in the Athens neighborhood of Sepolia. The New York Times reported: “Like many other immigrants to Greece, his parents struggled to find work. Antetokounmpo and his older brother, Thanasis, helped out by hawking items such as watches, bags and sunglasses. In 2007, Antetokounmpo started playing basketball and by 2009 was playing competitively for the youth squad of Filathlitikos.

Personal Life

Antetokounmpo officially gained Greek citizenship on May 9, 2013, with the official legal spelling of his name being

Giannis Antetokounmpo. His nickname is “The Greek Freak”.
Antetokounmpo’s father, Charles, was a former Nigerian football player, while his mother, Veronica, was a high-jumper. Veronica gave each of her five sons both a Greek and a Nigerian name. The name she chose for Giannis was Ougko (OO-goh).Charles died in September 2017, at age 54.
Antetokounmpo has two older brothers, Francis (Greek name Andreas) and Thanasis, as well as two younger brothers, Kostas and Alexis. He and Thanasis were teammates in Filathlitikos, with Kostas later joining the squad in the 2013–14 season. His oldest brother, Francis, has played football professionally in Nigeria. The entire Antetokounmpo family except for Francis and Thanasis moved from Athens to Milwaukee in early 2014. In July 2016, Giannis and Thanasis began their mandatory military service in Greece. The two brothers served a reduced three-month military service, as prescribed for Greek citizens who are permanent overseas residents.
Antetokounmpo is an avid fan of the Greek multi-sports club Olympiacos.
Thanasis made his NBA debut with the New York Knicks after being drafted by the organization with the 51st overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft. Antetokounmpo’s younger brother, Kostas, plays NCAA Division 1 college basketball in the United States, at the University of Dayton, while his youngest brother, Alexis, plays high school basketball in the US.

Antetokounmpo’s Family

Antetokounmpo officially gained Greek citizenship on May 9, 2013, with the official legal spelling of his name being Giannis Antetokounmpo. His nickname is “The Greek Freak”.

Antetokounmpo’s father, Charles, was a former Nigerian football player, while his mother, Veronica, was a high-jumper. Veronica gave each of her five sons both a Greek and a Nigerian name. The name she chose for Giannis was Ougko Charles died in September 2017, at age 54.

Antetokounmpo has two older brothers, Francis (Greek name Andreas) and Thanasis, as well as two younger brothers, Kostas and Alexis. He and Thanasis were teammates in Filathlitikos, with Kostas later joining the squad in the 2013–14 season. His oldest brother, Francis, has played football professionally in Nigeria. The entire Antetokounmpo family except for Francis and Thanasis moved from Athens to Milwaukee in early 2014. In July 2016, Giannis and Thanasis began their mandatory military service in Greece. The two brothers served a reduced three-month military service, as prescribed for Greek citizens who are permanent overseas residents.

Antetokounmpo is an avid fan of the Greek multi-sports club Olympiacos.

Thanasis made his NBA debut with the New York Knicks after being drafted by the organization with the 51st overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft. Antetokounmpo’s younger brother, Kostas, plays NCAA Division I college basketball in the United States, at the University of Dayton, while his youngest brother, Alexis, plays high school basketball in the US.

His Career

In 2012, Antetokounmpo joined the senior squad of Filathlitikos and played for them in Greece’s second-tier basketball league, the Greek A2 League, during the 2012–13 season.

In December 2012, just days after turning 18, Antetokounmpo signed a four-year deal with Spanish club CAI Zaragoza, reportedly including NBA buyouts after each season. A number of other major European clubs had been interested in adding him as well, including Barcelona and Efes, among others. With the contract starting with the 2013–14 season, he decided to stay with the Filathlitikos for the remainder of the 2012–13 season.

On April 28, 2013, Antetokounmpo officially made himself eligible for the 2013 NBA draft. He fulfilled his draft projections as a first-round pick by being selected 15th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks. On July 30, 2013, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Bucks, and he plays in the Bucks until now.

Career Highlights

Antetokounmpo led the Bucks in every one of the five major statistical categories (points, rebounds, assists, steals and

blocks) in the 2016–17 regular season, becoming only the fifth NBA player to do so after Dave Cowens, Scottie Pippen, Kevin Garnett and LeBron James.He also became the first player in NBA history to finish in the top 20 in the league in each of the five major categories in a regular season. As a result of his efforts, Antetokounmpo was named to the All-NBA Second Team, earning his first All-NBA honor. He was also named the recipient of the NBA Most Improved Player Award for the 2016–17 season, becoming the first player in Bucks history to be named Most Improved Player.

Antetokounmpo’s Team- The Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league’s Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and play at the Bradley Center.

The Bucks have won one league title (1971), two conference titles (1971 and 1974), and 13 division titles (1971–74, 1976, 1980–86, 2001). They have featured such notable players as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Sidney Moncrief, Oscar Robertson, Bob Dandridge, Bob Lanier, Glenn “Big Dog” Robinson, Ray Allen, Sam Cassell, Junior Bridgeman, Michael Redd, Terry Cummings, Vin Baker, Jon McGlocklin, Marques Johnson, and Brian Winters.

His National Team Career

Antetokounmpo represented Greece for the first time in July 2013 with the Greek Under-20 national team at the 2013 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship. He helped Greece to an 8–2 record and a fifth place overall finish, while averaging 8.0 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists across the 10 games. He finished the tournament ranked second in defensive rebounds (7.0) and seventh in blocked shots (1.4).

In 2014, Antetokounmpo played for the senior men’s Greek national basketball team for the first time, helping Greece finish ninth overall in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup with a 5–1 record. He averaged 6.3 points and 4.3 rebounds across the six games, while shooting 45.8% from the field.

Career Statistics