Giannis Antetokounmpo reflects on his fierce hunger to establish himself in the league coming to NBA as a kid: “ I wasn’t aware of the big lights, I came from Greece"

Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the greatest stories that the NBA has ever seen. Coming over from Greece in 2013, the Bucks forward has grown into one of the most dominant forces in league history. Even he is amazed.

"Year One, you could see the hunger in my eyes," Antetokounmpo said. "“I wasn’t aware of the big lights, I came from Greece."

At 18 years old, Antetokounmpo made his debut at Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks. He said he wasn’t scared on one of the world's biggest basketball stages. Now in his 10th season, Antetokounmpo is regarded as one of the world's best basketball players.

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The unlikely story of Giannas Antetokounmpo

Giannis Antetokounmpo was not a highly regarded prospect coming out of Greece. According to a draft scouting report, he was seen as comparable to Nicolas Batum. Without disrespect to Batum, no one would compare these two players today. Giannis played for Filathlitikos in the Greek second division.

Antetokounmpo was the 15th pick in one of the worst drafts in the last 15 years. For reference, the No. 1 pick that year was Anthony Bennett out of UNLV. Bennett only lasted four seasons. Giannis worked his way up to being the player he is today. He averaged only 6.8 points per game as a rookie.

Giannis continued to work on his game, and his scoring averaged increased every year. When Antetokounmpo came over to the United States, he was listed at 6-foot 9 and 205 pounds. He worked on his body and now stands at 6-11 and 242 pounds.

In 10 years, he has become probably the league's best player and is only 27 years old. He has won just about every award that can be won in the NBA.

Antetokounmpo is dominating with 33.6 points and 12.7 rebounds per game for the undefeated Milwaukee Bucks (7-0). They are an early favorite to contend for the championship.

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Basketball is an Antetokounmpo family affair

Giannis isn't the only member of his family to play basketball. He has three brothers who play. Two have played in the NBA. Thanasis Antetokounmpo is a teammate of Giannis’ with the Milwaukee Bucks. Kostas was a member of the 2020 championship LA Lakers. The youngest brother, Alex, plays for the Wisconsin Herd in the NBA G League.

The story of the Antetokounmpo brothers chasing their NBA dreams is so inspirational it was made into a movie, Disney's “Rise.”

Giannis is a great basketball player and is still young. It will be great to see what else he has in store over the rest of his career.