BarcelonaNikos Galis dazzled European basketball in the 1980s, but Giannis Antetokounmpo’s dominance is global. The Greek player, who comes from a humble family created by two Nigerian emigrants, is a national hero for most compatriots, who dream of winning the Eurobasket, but the ultra-right does not forgive him one thing: that he is black.
Nikólaos Michaloliakos, leader of Golden Dawn, a neo-Nazi party that was declared a criminal organization in 2020, is clear about this. “If we give a monkey a banana and a flag, is it Greek?” he asks. Many of Antetokounmpo’s murals in Greece, such as one located in Palaio Faliro, are repeatedly attacked by vandals with Nazi graffiti. The parents of the great world basketball star lived in Greece illegally, and when he was young, he himself was forced to sell in mantle top fake handbags, watches, sunglasses and perfumes on the streets of Athens. “There are people who say ‘He’s black. Greeks are not black’. And you try to explain to them that it has nothing to do with the color of the skin. My parents grew up in Nigeria, but I’ve never been there . If I’m not Greek I don’t know what I am,” reflected Antetokounmpo during an interview with the prestigious magazine Sports Illustrated.
Antetokounmpo is competing in the Eurobasket with two of his brothers, Kostas and Thanasis, with whom he shared bunks when he was a child. When he had finished contributing to the family economy, he accompanied his older brother, Thanasis, to play basketball. It was one of the few moments of the day when he managed to forget the hardships of a life that presented an uncertain future. The only problem is that, since they only had a pair of thighs, they couldn’t share a match. One played and the other waited. When they got home, reality hit them hard again. “Sometimes the fridge was empty”, he remembers without exaggeration.
A film life
Giannis Antetokounmpo was fed for many years thanks to the charity of those who selflessly helped the family put something in their mouths. His story is so mind-blowing that Disney has turned it into a sweet, sugary nyonya movie: overcoming. “His trajectory is shocking: that of a guy with very complex origins who was able to make it to the NBA. He has enormous physical talent, but that he was able to make it to the NBA is fascinating. What What caught my attention is the ability to grow as a person and to evolve as a player, which allowed him to overcome some very adverse scenarios. The story keeps growing,” says José Manuel Puertas to ARA, author of the book Giannis, the MVP who emerged from misery (JC Editions).
The film crudely portrays economic hardship – the tenant changed the lock on their house because they didn’t pay on time –, racist attacks on the bus and police chases. “When a young man goes from such origins to such great success it’s easy to lose his head. He hasn’t lost it. He’s very low-key. Most NBA players arrive at the arenas like they’re models, but he doesn’t need this public display, he doesn’t need to show off his wealth. He’s not at all pretentious and that’s one of his big keys. He has ambition to become the best, but he hasn’t lost his north and remains a humble guy, familiar and little given to public display,” analyzes Puertas.
“Antetokounmpo is very respected in the NBA because he is very focused and does not tend to look for trouble – explains Puertas -. His rivals say that he does not trash talking during the matches. He is very respectful. As a player he is very special. Although he lacks the shot, he has very favorable conditions to play in the NBA. If you surround it well with shooters, it becomes a weapon of mass destruction. When he arrived in the league he was very much a walk-on, but he was lucky to fall into a locker room like the one in Milwaukee, which welcomed him very well.” Despite being a world star, the player never forgets his past. “The what I’ve done so far in life is no small feat: managing to put my brothers through private school, being able to take care of my family in Nigeria and Greece. Disappointed with a party? Would he be disappointed with me if he was disappointed with this .” Unlike most of his peers, Antetokounmpo understands the real value of money.
