As if the story of the Antetokounmpo brothers wasn’t already like a movie, another incredible chapter was written this past Wednesday night during the NBA match between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was on the court playing for the Milwaukee Bucks when, with two minutes and 18 seconds left in the game, Giannis’ brothers, Thanasis and Kostas, players for the Milwaukee Bucks and the LA Lakers respectively, were substituted in. This marked the first time that the “Antetokounbros” were all on the same court in an NBA game.
“This moment today is probably my favorite moment I’ve had so far in the NBA,” Giannis said after the Bucks’ 112-97 win.
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The Antetokounmpo brothers were raised in the Sepolia neighborhood of Athens by their parents, who were migrants from Nigeria and who often struggled to find a job. This family “reunion,” on the Staples Center court in the city of Los Angeles, transported them back to their childhood in Greece.
“This moment, just seeing the guys that I grew up with… we slept in the same bed and we were looking at the ceiling and imagining if we’re ever going to play in the NBA, if we’re ever going to make it… Just being on the same court while our mom is …videotaping the whole thing, I think it’s priceless, and nobody can take this away from us,” Giannis Antetokounmpo said in the post-match press conference.
This was only the second time in NBA history that three brothers had played in the same game; the first was when Jrue Holiday, now Giannis’ teammate, played against his brothers, Aaron and Justin, as Jrue’s New Orleans Pelicans met the Indiana Pacers in December of 2019.
