Tag: Thanasis Antetokounmpo

Giannis Antetokounmpo inspired the best reaction from his brother Thanasis during Greece’s Olympic win

The Antetokounmpo brothers are excellent teammates for each other as well.

Greece men’s basketball secured a crucial victory over Australia during group play of the 2024 Paris Olympic, defeating Australia on Friday.

Led by two-time NBA MVP and former NBA Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo,  he led either team in scoring finishing with a game-high 20 points (8-of-11 FG) during the contest. He also added 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals.

It was a fantastic all-around performance from the Milwaukee Bucks superstar and it inspired a wonderful reaction from his teammate and older brother Thanasis Antetokounmpo (who has played for Greece’s national team since 2016.

Even though he did not step on the court during the match, he was among the loudest cheerleaders in the building with support for his brother:

A Timberwolves broadcaster roasted Thanasis Antetokounmpo right as he checked into the game

You know it probably isn’t a close game if Thanasis Antetokounmpo is playing.

Unfortunately for the Milwaukee Bucks, the decision to fire Adrian Griffin and hire Doc Rivers did not solve all of their issues.

Milwaukee has one win and five losses in the six games played since Rivers has taken over the job. Their latest loss came at the hands of the Minnesota Timberwolves, who are one of the best teams in the NBA so far this season.

[gambcom-standard rankid=”3011″ ]

During the fourth quarter of the victory, Milwaukee trailed by more than 20 points and Thanasis Antetokounmpo was about to check in the game. It was at this exact moment that Jim Petersen, who is a longtime TV analyst for the Timberwolves, knew that the game was over.

Thanasis, who has played for Milwaukee alongside his brother Giannis Antetokounmpo since 2019, does not see the court very often.

During the games that he does step on the floor, the Bucks are typically amid a lopsided victory or blowout defeat. It is fairly rare that Thanasis plays if the game is close, though.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1371]

Everything we know about the Giannis Antetokounmpo game ball drama, the silliest sports saga of the year

This was all such a massive misunderstanding.

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo scored a career-high 64 points during a victory over the Indiana Pacers, then chaos ensued.

According to league insider Chris Haynes, the Pacers “took the game ball away” after the performance from the two-time MVP. Antetokounmpo then “took off” toward the Pacers locker room to try to retrieve the ball back from the franchise he had just defeated.

But there is more to the story and plenty to unpack with this situation.

So we did our best to gather all the information and put that together in a way that will make some sense.

Based on the reporting we have gathered, here is everything we know:

A fuming Giannis Antetokounmpo was calmed down by his brother Thanasis in a sweet moment

Only a brother truly knows you best.

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s brother Thanasis doesn’t usually contribute much on the court. But his presence as a mediator and sounding board to the perennial MVP candidate is still invaluable to the Milwaukee Bucks.

We saw it again Wednesday night.

As Milwaukee battled the Indiana Pacers on the road, something about the game’s action seemed to irk Giannis. He was fuming on the bench, pleading his case. That is until Thanasis came over and placed his hands on his brother’s shoulders, hugged him, and began telling him something in his ear.

Giannis started furious, but he quickly calmed down in this sweet moment between brothers:

The best takes and the sharpest bets on all the hoops storylines you need to know. Sign up for our Layup Lines newsletter, hitting your inbox on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Amazing.

Milwaukee prevailed 149-138 on the strength of a 38-point, 17-rebound, 12-assist triple-double from Giannis. Never discount the power of a brother’s understanding. Especially when you’re at the top of the basketball world.

Walker Kessler, Jazz win Skills Challenge on All-Star Saturday night

Kessler and Team Jazz walked away as the champions of the Skills Challenge after defeating the Antetokounmpos and Rooks.

Walker Kessler and Team Jazz on Saturday walked away as the champions of the Skills Challenge after defeating the Antetokounmpos and Rooks in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Team Jazz, which also featured Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton, came out of the gate a bit flat after losing in the first round and relay portion of the competition. They regrouped and took the passing and shooting portions of the event to collect the 300 points needed to win.

The trio of players had the benefit of having their home crowd cheer them on throughout the competition. They easily received the loudest ovation of all of the players introduced and were ecstatic to give their fans the victory.

The rookie team, which consisted of Paolo Banchero, Jaden Ivey and Jabari Smith Jr., took the lead early after posting a one-minute, 14-second time in the relay round. The speed of Ivey paid off on the final relay, which was a full-court sprint and layup.

The Antetokounmpos were without Giannis in the event after the two-time MVP suffered a wrist injury on Thursday with Milwaukee. He was replaced by Bucks teammate Jrue Holiday, but the addition of the All-Star was not enough: The group failed to win in any of the rounds.

The Skills Challenge tipped off the festivities on Saturday night and continued a busy weekend as the league celebrated its stars with the annual showcase.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=650262099]

[mm-video type=video id=01gsgjxf6hmfj8aqyq63 playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f1jxkahtwnvzepyp image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gsgjxf6hmfj8aqyq63/01gsgjxf6hmfj8aqyq63-bf2fc0189827971b2d93850ba6a6d436.jpg]

NBA All-Star 2023: Participants for Skills Challenge, 3-Point, Dunk Contest

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the participants for the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest and Slam Dunk Contest at All-Star Weekend.

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the participants for the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest and Slam Dunk Contest on Feb. 18 during All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The weekend will get underway on Friday with the Celebrity game and the Rising Stars competition at 9 p.m. EST. The events conclude on Sunday with the G League Next Up Game at 3 p.m. EST and the 72nd All-Star Game at 8:30 p.m. EST.

The festivities on All-Star Saturday night will begin at 8 p.m. EST and will be televised on TNT starting with the Skills Challenge. The second event will be the 3-Point Contest with the Slam Dunk Contest wrapping up the evening at Vivint Arena.

Thanasis Antetokounmpo hilariously broke up fight with Tristan Thompson by simply pointing to the scoreboard

SCOREBOARD!

When you are the reigning champions, like the Milwaukee Bucks are, you have the right to behave with certain confidence when you are on the court.

As the most recent owners of the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy, the Bucks can always default to that as their default response. However, they can act even more self-assured in any single game when they are also dominating their opponent.

That is exactly what happened against the Bulls on Tuesday evening, but the Bucks needed to remind Chicago big man Tristan Thompson.

When the game was almost over, the two teams got scrappy when Thompson refused to let go over Serge Ibaka’s shorts after boxing out for a rebound.

Ibaka and Thompson got in each other’s faces and it didn’t take long until both of their respective teammates sprinted over to try to stick up for their squad.

But the most interesting moment of the squabble came after things began to cool off a bit and the skirmish devolved from physicality to bickering.

Thanasis Antetokounmpo, the older brother of reigning NBA Finals MVP and two-time NBA MVP winner Giannis Antetokounmpo, attempted to de-escalate the situation.

Thankfully, things didn’t get out of hand, partially thanks to the fact that Antetokounmpo’s strategy was laugh-out-loud caliber funny. He simply pointed to the scoreboard to remind Thompson that the Bulls were down by more than 30 points.

Antetokounmpo is absolutely correct in that there is nothing to fight about when your team is already getting annihilated. This thing is over. Get ready to hit the ice baths and call it a night.

For both teams, the playoffs are coming soon and it is better to save your energy and your pent-up scrappiness for that environment than to waste it during the tail end of a blowout.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01evcfkb10bw5a3nky image=https://ftw.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[lawrence-related id=1862991]

[listicle id=1845753]

NBA Skills Challenge: Evan Mobley wins it for Cavs with half-court shot

Evan Mobley sank the half-court shot needed to send the Cavs to the title in the Skills Challenge on Saturday at All-Star Weekend.

Evan Mobley on Saturday drained the half-court shot needed to lead the Cavs to the win in the Skills Challenge at NBA All-Star Weekend in Cleveland, Ohio.

Mobley and the Cavs, which included teammates Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland, defeated the Rooks in the fourth and final round. The two teams were tasked with shooting half-court shots to win and the player that hit it fastest won as Mobley drained it in 5.5 seconds.

The Cavs came out of the gate fast, winning the first round to collect 100 points in the scoring. Teams attempted to make shots from five different locations on the court ranging from 10-30 feet. Each spot was worth between 1-5 points.

In the second round, the Antetokounmpos, featuring brothers Giannis, Thanasis and Alex, topped the three teams in a passing drill for 100 points. Players had 30 seconds to make as many passes as possible into three, oversized moving targets.

The Rooks took the third round and 200-point prize as Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham and Josh Giddey recorded the fastest time in a full-court relay. The three first-year players posted a winning time of one minute, 18 seconds to set up a showdown with the Cavs in the final round.

Cunningham and the Rooks went first in the final round as each player launched shots from the half-court line. The No. 1 pick last year sank one shot in 9.9 seconds, which was eventually beaten by Mobley and the Cavs on their second attempt.

The Skills Challenge tipped off the festivities on Saturday night and continued a busy weekend for the Rooks and Cavs. The four rookies on the court each participated in the Rising Stars game on Friday while Allen and Garland will compete in the All-Star Game on Sunday.

The 3-Point and Slam Dunk Contests were to follow the Skills Challenge.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

[lawrence-related id=72812,46523,42852]

[mm-video type=video id=01fw6smjz50wjg4mzksn playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f1jxkahtwnvzepyp image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fw6smjz50wjg4mzksn/01fw6smjz50wjg4mzksn-10b31238e1c345f303167bec7e7c6a26.jpg]

[listicle id=72729]

Kostas Antetokounmpo agrees on two-way deal to stay with Lakers

The brother of Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo has decided to stay with the Los Angeles Lakers for one more year.

Everyone is wondering whether the reigning two-time Most Valuable Player of the NBA will agree to a supermax contract with his current team, the Milwaukee Bucks, as he looks to continue to push his legacy in the National Basketball Association. Coming from the streets of Athens, it would be safe to assume anything, but Giannis’s legacy is already doing work without him lifting one of his bigger than life legs.

Giannis’ brother Kostas has agreed to a deal with the Los Angeles Lakers as a two-way player. Of course, having Giannis’ brother is an intriguing proposition but being in a position to have a source close to Giannis telling him about the Lakers organization and lore can’t hurt.

Kostas is likely not going to be the key piece to move Giannis from one team to another. But what he is, is a vessel, not unlike Kentavious Caldwell-Pope when he came to the Lakers a few years ago. And the Antetokounmpo’s look to be their own family, much like the family of Klutch Sports.

[lawrence-related id=36027,36020]