For Antetokounmpo brothers, EuroBasket another chance to rise as one

MILAN (Italy) - It is an epic story that fits perfectly within the canon of cinematic fairytales.

A band of brothers of Nigerian parentage, born impoverished in Greece, turning wild fantasies of fortune and fame into a glorious reality through a basketball adventure that takes their family to the United States.

An American Dream, forged in Athens. Rise - the tale of the incredible Antetokounmpos.

“They had to tone it down a bit,” Thanasis, second-eldest among five siblings, advises. Darker moments, not incorporated into this feel-good movie script. Yet now, all that can be seen is light, their talents illuminated on screen for us all to relish.

What an ascent, indeed. Their present day is a world removed from times when they sold sunglasses and bags on street corners in the shadows of The Parthenon to put food on the table.

"Kind of different now,” 30-year-old Thanasis reflects. “Sometimes, when I’m back in Greece, I try and walk there, just to motivate myself, just to get an appreciation of everything that we've been through.”

Those roads have led so improbably to three NBA titles stashed in the familial collection. 

"Sometimes when you are going through the experience, and you create history, you're in the moment and you don't realize it." - Giannis 

The first earned not by Giannis Antetokounmpo, the two-time Most Valuable Player of the league, or by Thanasis, his teammate with the Milwaukee Bucks. But by Kostas, the second-youngest of the brood, who beat his elder brothers to that slice of Greece basketball history by one year, during his spell with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Currently, they are in pursuit of a championship title in unison, at FIBA EuroBasket 2022. If not for the baby of the bunch, Alex, missing out on the final Greek roster, it might have been a quartet, not a trio, here in Milan where their side has begun 4-0 and is already prepping for next week’s knockout phase in Berlin.

More dreams realized. Moments for the family album. “It's an unbelievable experience,” Giannis, aged 27, declares. “Sometimes when you are going through the experience, and you create history, you're in the moment, and you don't realize it. 

“But I know that 10, 15, 20 years from now, we're going to look back and be like, 'wow, like, all three of us.' We can share and feel the same story, and that's unique.”

They bounce off each other, will and push one another on. On court, a last fist bump before tipoff between Giannis and Thanasis. On the bench, on the practice court, mutual support that drives each forward.

“It's always a good competitive spirit,” reveals 24-year-old Kostas, whose belated EuroBasket bow , following a knee injury, came against Estonia on Thursday. 

“You know, we're not trying to say somebody is better than the other. We're just trying to make everyone better at the same time. I help Giannis. Giannis helped me. Thanasis helps Giannis. I help Alex, and just vice-versa.”

The shared DNA has fueled ambitions. To excel, and then raise the bar in a way that their mother Veronica, a former high jumper, once strived to accomplish.

“There's a competition and motivation, mostly,” Thanasis adds. A lot, in fact. “Because everybody's different. Every player is different. And we just drove ourselves, drove each other, to be the best version of ourselves.”

Alex, aged just 21, is the most competitive of the group, he signals. “Because he's the youngest,” Kostas adds in support. “The youngest is always wanting to out-do his older brothers. He's really committed to it.”

“Hopefully Alex will also improve and get better,” Giannis injects. “And one day maybe join this team and help this team be great.”

They are all, in reality, striving to emulate the totem known to all as The Greek Freak though, leading all scorers at EuroBasket with 31.0 points per game and treating Milano to an exhibition with a 41-point tour de force against Ukraine on Tuesday. 

The screens of a thousand cellphones flickered. No wonder his Europe-to-NBA contemporary Luka Doncic, a player who casually dropped 47 points on Wednesday, has tipped Giannis to lead all scorers at this EuroBasket. Another illuminating chapter in this fantastical biography looms. 

Moments to savor, Thanasis agrees, but another reminder of the many parts of this back story enacted away from the cameras.

“The simple stuff, not the amazing stuff,” is what he confesses to appreciating most. “Some people will say like, ‘oh my god, he’s dunked or he’s shooting now.’

“My thing is the simple stuff I see. Mentality-wise, how he studies. I see this straight line he's going on. He knows where he wants to go.”

“It's an honor to be able to share the court with, literally, my brothers – and with my other brothers - all of us together.” - Thanasis

Next destination: Berlin, following Thursday's group closer against Estonia. Mission: a gold medal for Greece to sit alongside their NBA title rings.

This improbable, incredible journey is far from over. All the better for this latest opportunity for a brotherhood of three to rise as one.

“How many times have you seen this in a national team?” Kostas smiles. “It is really special and I really cherish these moments and this experience.”

Thanasis will take it in. “It's an honor to be able to share the court with, literally, my brothers – and with my other brothers - all of us together.”

FIBA