Back in 2016, Giannis Antetokounmpo was experiencing the changing of becoming a better play in the NBA. The Greek Freak was showing a maturity off the court that not so many players his age (21 at the time) show. He embraced that role and told his agent, Alex Saratsis, that he was ready to dominate and be the leader of the Milwaukee Bucks.
Giannis has always said he looks up to people and tries to do the good things they did and he had a great inspiration in 2016. During an interview with Slam Online, Giannis and his agent, Sarantsis, talked with Adam Figman, describing the player’s first three years in the association. The current NBA MVP claimed he’d be great in the league, and even stated he would do the same for Milwaukee that Kevin Durant did for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“For as long as I’m playing, if I work hard and grab the opportunity, I’ll be someone special,” Giannis said. “I think there’s not a lot of people like me in this league who can handle the ball at 7-feet. When you’ve got something unique, you’ve got to work on it so you can be someone special and leave your legacy on the court.”
“He told me the other day, ‘I want to do for Milwaukee what Kevin Durant did for Oklahoma City,’” Saratsis said. “He was like, ‘I want that legacy, so 20 years from now, I have built this into my own Oklahoma City, so people look at me and say, he left an indelible—I’m using the word indelible, though he didn’t—but indelible mark on the city and franchise and organization.’ Last summer, when we were having that dinner, I could see that’s what he was thinking. That was him thinking, I’m at a point where I can be a leader on the team. And it’s not like ‘Me vs Jabari [Parker]’ or ‘Me vs [Khris] Middleton,’ it’s like, I can be a leader on this team and I want to leave my mark on this city and leave my mark on this organization.
“That’s when I was like, OK, this kid is starting to get it. This kid is starting to understand.”
For the record, this interview was published even before the Oklahoma City Thunder blew the 3-1 lead they had over the Golden State Warriors in the WCF and Kevin Durant left the Thunder to join the Dubs.
Still, it’s not a secret that KD, alongside Russell Westbrook and company, changed the face of the Thunder. They were perennial contenders in the league until the squad starter to get dismantled. There is no doubt that they lived great moments while KD was part of the team, but his exit was surrounded by controversy.
Obviously, Giannis wasn’t referring to something that hadn’t even happened at the time, but it’s curious to see his words when he’s been heavily linked with Golden State, as well.
