Giannis Antetokounmpo and his longtime girlfriend Mariah Riddlesprigger finally tied the knot on Sept. 1, 2024. The wedding was held in the Costa Navarino resort near Pylos, Greece and while there were quite a few big names in attendance, it appears there was one notable absentee too, Damian Lillard. A picture recently surfaced on social media, which indicated Lillard might have been at another wedding.
https://twitter.com/GiannisWorld/status/1830697181361381570
Well, turns out it was not Antetokounmpo’s wedding, but Moe Harkless’. Evan Turner, who is with Lillard in that image, actually shared pictures from Harkless’ wedding on X.
— Evan Turner (@thekidet) September 2, 2024
It just so happened, that both the weddings were on Sept. 1, so Lillard had to pick between them and we know which one he chose. While that might be surprising as he is a teammate of Antetokounmpo’s, I assume he is a lot closer to Harkless, as they were teammates on the Portland Trail Blazers from 2015 to 2019.
Back in 2016, Lillard had even campaigned to keep Harkless on the Trail Blazers when he was a restricted free agent, so you’d think they have a bit of a special bond. With that in mind, I doubt Antetokounmpo would have had much of a problem with his teammate missing his wedding.
While Lillard didn’t show up, some current and former Milwaukee Bucks players did make the trip to Greece. A picture of Jrue Holiday, Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis, and Wes Matthews at the wedding went viral on social media.
Jrue Holiday, Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis, and Wes Matthew’s all at Giannis’s Wedding 💍 pic.twitter.com/78INFaIM5z
— BucksShowYo🦌 (@BucksShowYo) September 1, 2024
Middleton, who has been a teammate of Antetokounmpo since 2013, was the best man at the wedding. As for other notable attendees, it has been reported that LeBron James, the Bucks’ owners, Serena Williams, and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis were present as well.
Not a lot else has been revealed regarding the event, as the couple did not want media coverage. They preferred that it be a private ceremony.
Antetokounmpo and Riddlesprigger’s wedding was a long time coming. They started dating all the way back in 2014 and have three kids together, Liam, Maverick, and Eva.
Lillard And Antetokounmpo’s First Season As Teammates Didn’t Go According To Plan
When Lillard was traded to the Bucks to team up with Antetokounmpo last year, there was understandably a lot of hype surrounding the team. Fast forward to now, though, and that’s not the case.
That’s largely because Lillard and Antetokounmpo’s first season as teammates didn’t quite go to plan. While Giannis was incredible yet again with averages of 30.4 points, 11.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.1 blocks per game, his co-star didn’t quite live up to expectations.
Lillard struggled in his new surroundings by his standards and finished the campaign with averages of 24.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 7.0 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. He also shot just 42.4% from the field and 35.4% from beyond the arc.
The Bucks only managed to get the third seed in the East with a 49-33 record as a result and also made a mid-season coaching change, with Doc Rivers replacing Adrian Griffin as head coach. Rivers’ arrival certainly didn’t seem to make things better and the Bucks were trending downward toward the end of the regular season.
Things then got even worse when Antetokounmpo injured his calf just over a week before their first-round series against the Indiana Pacers. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Bucks suffered another blow when Lillard missed a couple of games in that series due to an Achilles injury and with that, their fate was all but sealed.
The Pacers knocked them out in six games, and that meant the Bucks had been eliminated in the first round for the second year in a row. Injuries played a part in their first-round exit at the hands of the Miami Heat in 2023 as well and they’d be hoping the injury bug stays away next year.
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