Family, girlfriend surprise Giannis after he gets all-star nod
Orlando - Giannis Antetokounmpo heard the knock at his hotel door and figured it was the room service he ordered.
It was, but there was something more. Tagging along outside the door were his mom, Veronica, and his girlfriend, Mariah, who surprised the 22-year-old to celebrate his newfound all-star status.
Antetokounmpo said he watched the TNT selection show Thursday night but initially did not believe he would be named a starter for the Feb. 19 NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans.
"My family came here to Orlando to surprise me," Antetokounmpo said. "They just wanted to be here. I was watching on TV. When I saw LeBron (James), I thought I wouldn't be (picked). I knew Jimmy Butler was going to be in it. I thought maybe Kevin Love, Melo (Carmelo Anthony) were going to be.
"But yeah, it was a great feeling being in the starting lineup."
Giannis' older brother Thanasis, who is playing pro basketball in Spain, was awake early in the morning to call with congratulations.
"When they announced my name, he called 10 or 15 seconds after," Antetokounmpo said.
Antetokounmpo is the first Bucks starter in the All-Star Game since 1986, when Sidney Moncrief started for the winning East squad. And the Greek Freak is the first Bucks player to be named an all-star since Michael Redd in 2004.
The Bucks forward was ranked second in the Eastern Conference frontcourt voting by the fans, media and players under the revised format adopted this year. Each group ranked him No. 2 behind only the Cavaliers' James.
"Just hard work pays off," Antetokounmpo said. "People recognize it more now. It's a great feeling and it will be an even greater feeling if we get a win tonight (against Orlando)."
Antetokounmpo worked on his game during the summer, first playing for Greece's national team in Olympic qualifying before returning to spend time in California and Milwaukee. He has tried to take pointers from coach Jason Kidd along with other NBA greats, including Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and John Stockton.
"When you interact with those great players, you get a lot of feedback," Antetokounmpo said. "When I was talking to John Stockton (in training camp), he gave me some tips. I had my notebook and I was writing down tips, how to find players, how to come off the pick-and-roll, get low and find the right pass.
"After talking to KG (at a Bucks practice), he always texts me. We go back and forth after the game. He was talking about mentality. You take different things from different players and just try to add it in your game and do better.
"Kobe was more about work ethic, play hard. Guys don't play hard every day in this league. He said your summer helps you get better."
The Bucks held shootaround Friday morning at the Orlando Sports Center and among those in attendance was one of the franchise's three primary owners, Jamie Dinan. He said he was thrilled for Antetokounmpo.
"Not only is he a starter but a very well-deserved starter," Dinan said. "Fans in their 20s love him. Teenagers love him.
"When you watch him, he has that infectious smile. I'm old enough to remember Sidney Moncrief. But you notice when the results came out, with the players and the media he was No. 2 (behind James in frontcourt voting). That just speaks volumes."
Dinan, Marc Lasry and Wes Edens took over as Bucks owners before the 2014-'15 season and vowed to make the team a contender. They hired Kidd as coach and believed the young duo of Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker were players to build around. Antetokounmpo, who was a skinny kid playing in the second division in Greece, is now playing next to James in the East starting five.
"As happy as I am as a Bucks owner, I'm even happier for him as an individual," Dinan said. "We all know his life story. This is something they write about in fiction because it's rarely ever true in the real world.
"I think it's great for the franchise. I think he's helping raise his teammates to the level they're starting to play. It really makes our future not just brighter but more believable. A lot of times in life, you are who you believe you are."
Bucks forward Steve Novak said Antetokounmpo's time had come to be chosen.
"We've seen him come on to the scene," Novak said. "He has made that jump to a guy who wasn't an all-star to being an all-star starter.
"We've seen it on the court. I've not heard one peep of, 'I'm not sure if he's deserving. I'm not sure if he's there yet.'
"He deserves it, and being his teammates we're so happy for him. It's going to be so fun to watch him out there."