Giannis Antetokounmpo made history last July when the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Phoenix Suns in six games in the 2021 NBA Finals. The Greek player proved doubters wrong after signing the largest contract in NBA history to stay with his first and only team in the league.
The Bucks didn’t have an easy path to the championship, facing the Brooklyn Nets, Atlanta Hawks, and Suns on their way to the glory. The team’s front office made sure to surround the forward with the right players to make up for his shortcomings, creating a terrific squad at Fiserv Forum.
Giannis’ championship run was remarkable and he earned the respect of many people after winning the title without joining a superteam. Recently, Shaquille O’Neal and Robert Horry lauded the 2x NBA MVP for staying loyal to his squad instead of looking for an easier path to the title.
Talking on The Big Shot Bob Pod, the former Laker teammates discussed Giannis’ memorable run, admitting they liked that attitude of not being friends with anybody in the league and winning with the squad he was given.
“The one thing I respect about Giannis is he said ‘I ain’t friends with nobody’ you know, I wanna do one thing and go out and win. So I respect his championship, I respect it,” Horry said.
Shaq agreed with those remarks, saying if Giannis can win back-to-back titles, he’ll earn more admiration from the Big Diesel. However, Shaq also took a shot at Mike Budenholzer.
“If he’s able to do it again, I’m his biggest fan. But he just needs a better coach than Bud.”
Giannis has exceeded the expectations in Milwaukee, becoming one of the most dominant players in the league right now, fighting hard to be where he is at this moment, leading his squad to the promised land after 50 years.
Antetokounmpo has a different mindset and isn’t interested in joining other stars to win an easy title. Giannis went through hard times every season until he finally was able to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy. That was a huge accomplishment knowing how difficult it was and all the people that doubted him.
