Giannis Antetokounmpo

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Antetokounmpo with the Milwaukee Bucks in November 2014
No. 34 – Milwaukee Bucks
Position Small forward
League NBA
Personal information
Born December 6, 1994
Sepolia, Athens, Greece
Nationality Greek
Listed height 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight 217 lb (98 kg)
Career information
NBA draft 2013 / Round: 1 / Pick: 15th overall
Selected by the Milwaukee Bucks
Pro career 2012–present
Career history
2012–2013 Filathlitikos (Greece 2nd)
2013–present Milwaukee Bucks
Career highlights and awards

Giannis Antetokounmpo[1] (Greek: Γιάννης Αντετοκούνμπο, Greek pronunciation: [ˈʝanis a(n)detoˈku(m)bo]; born December 6, 1994) is a Greek professional basketball player who currently plays for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Professional career

Greece

Antetokounmpo started playing basketball with the youth teams of Filathlitikos in Greece. He began his professional career in Greece's 2nd-tier basketball league, the Greek A2 League, with the senior men's club of Filathlitikos in the 2012–13 season. When he turned 18, in December 2012, he signed a four-year contract with the Spanish League club CAI Zaragoza.[2] The contract with Zaragoza was worth €250,000 euros net income per season, and ran from the 2013–14 to 2016–17 seasons, with the last season being an option year.[3] The contract also included an affordable buyout clause that could be exercised by any team that plays in the NBA or the Euroleague.[4] He decided to stay with the Filathlitikos for the remainder of the 2012–13 season.

During the Greek A2 League 2012–13 season, Antetokounmpo shot 46.4% from the field overall (62.1% on 2 PT field goals), 31.3% on 3 PT field goals, and 72.0% on free throws, while averaging 22.5 minutes per game.[5] He averaged 9.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game, in 26 games played. He also had a PIR of 8.3.[6] He was also selected by the coaches as a special participant in the 2013 Greek League All-Star Game. Even though he was not actually selected as an all-star, the coaches let him play in the game as a treat for the fans.[7] In addition to playing in the 2nd-tier Greek A2 League during the 2012–13 season, he also played in Greece's 5th-tier ESKA league category for youth competitions. Because of this situation, he played in two separate league competitions in 2012–13 for the same club in Greece, playing for both Filathlitikos' senior and junior team.

NBA

On April 28, 2013, it was announced that Antetokounmpo was entering his name into the 2013 NBA draft, as an early entrant.[8] 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.[9] On May 22, 2014, he was named to the 2014 NBA All-Rookie second team.[10]

On October 16, 2014, the Bucks exercised their third-year team option on Antetokounmpo's rookie scale contract, extending the contract through the 2015–16 season.[11] On February 6, 2015, he recorded a then career-high 27 points and 15 rebounds in a 111-117 loss to the Houston Rockets.[12] Three days later, he was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played February 2-8, the first of his career.[13] On February 14, he competed in the 2015 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. On March 9, he scored a career-high 29 points on 11-of-16 shooting in a 103-114 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.[14]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013–14 Milwaukee 77 23 24.6 .414 .347 .683 4.4 1.9 .8 .8 6.8
2014–15 Milwaukee 81 71 31.4 .491 .159 .741 6.7 2.6 .9 1.0 12.7
Career 158 94 28.1 .464 .296 .719 5.6 2.3 .8 .9 9.8

International career

Antetokounmpo was a member of the Greek Under-20 national basketball team. He played with Greece's Under-20 national team at the 2013 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship, where he shot 36.4% from the field, and averaged 8.0 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game.[15]

Antetokounmpo is also a member of the senior men's Greek national basketball team. He played with Greece's senior national team at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, where he averaged 6.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 45.8% from the field.[16]

Personal life

Antetokounmpo was born in Sepolia, Athens, Greece to Nigerian parents.[17] Although he is of Nigerian descent, he does not have Nigerian citizenship.[18] He officially gained full Greek citizenship on May 9, 2013,[19] with the official legal spelling of his name being Giannis Antetokounmpo.[20] His nickname is "The Greek Freak".[21]

Giannis has two older brothers, Francis and Thanasis (b. 1992), as well as two younger brothers, Kostas and Alexis.[22] Thanasis was Giannis's teammate in Filathlitikos, and he also played with him in the 2013 Greek League All-Star Game, while Francis has played football professionally in Nigeria and Kostas started playing officially for Filathlitikos during their 2013–14 season. All of the Antetokounmpo brothers have played basketball in the Filathlitikos system.

Thanasis was drafted by the New York Knicks with the 51st overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft.[23]

Awards and accomplishments

See also

References

  1. ↑ FIBAEurope.com Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece).
  2. ↑ BasketballPlus.nl 18 jarige Giannis Adetokunbo naar CAI Zaragoza (Dutch).
  3. ↑ ACB.com Basket CAI Zaragoza se hace con los derechos de Giannis Adetocunbo (Spanish).
  4. ↑ NYTimes.com A Hunger for a Better Life May Lead to the N.B.A.
  5. ↑ FIBA.com GIANN ANTETOKOUBO | Season 2012/2013 - Accumulated Stats Tab.
  6. ↑ Filathlitikos 2012-2013 Statistics.
  7. ↑ Sport24.gr Όλα τα αστέρια στο All Star Game (Greek).
  8. ↑ Adetokunbo enters the draft
  9. ↑ "Bucks sign Neal, Antetokounmpo". NBA.com (Press release). Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. July 30, 2013. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  10. ↑ Bucks' Antetokounmpo named to NBA's All-Rookie second team
  11. ↑ "Bucks Exercise Rookie Scale Contract Options on Antetokounmpo and Henson". NBA.com (Press release). Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. October 16, 2014. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  12. ↑ Godwin, Jordan (February 6, 2015). "Houston Rockets hit 15 3-pointers to beat Bucks 117-111". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Giannis Named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for Games Played Feb. 2-8". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. February 9, 2015. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Davis pours in 43, Pelicans beat Bucks 114-103". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. March 9, 2015. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  15. ↑ U20men.FIBAEurope.com Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece).
  16. ↑ 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup – Giannis Antetokounmpo.
  17. ↑ FIBA.com Adetokoubo's whirlwind saga just starting.
  18. ↑ Γίνονται Έλληνες οι Αντετοκούμπο (Greek).
  19. ↑ Sport24.gr Έλληνες πολίτες οι αδερφοί Αντετοκούμπο (Greek).
  20. ↑ Giannis Antetokounmpo received today his Greek citizenship. As of today, this shall be the official name/surname as it appears in ID/Passport.
  21. ↑ Soaringdownsouth.com Brad’s Beat: 6’10 PG Known As The “Greek Freak” Turning Heads in NBA Draft.
  22. ↑ Draftexpress.com NBA Draft Prospect of the Week: Giannis Adetokunbo.
  23. ↑ 2014 NBA Draft Results: Knicks select Thanasis Antetokounmpo with 51st pick

External links