At his political rally in Milwaukee on Friday, former President Donald Trump seemingly questioned the ‘Greekness' of Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was born in and lived in Greece until the Bucks drafted him in 2013.
Ahead of the 2024 presidential election, Trump, the Republican Party's nominee, arrived in Milwaukee for a rally at the Fiserv Forum, the home arena of the Bucks. During the rally, Trump began talking about the Bucks and Antetokounmpo, who he did not mention by name.
“Your team is very good. I would say the Greek is a seriously good player, do you agree?” Trump said to the crowd, who cheered. “And tell me; who has more Greek in him? The Greek or me? I think we have about the same, right? He is some — he's a great player, maybe the best player in the NBA, actually. He may be the best player, who's supposed to be a very good guy too.”
After Saturday's home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Antetokounmpo was asked about Trump's comments.
“I'm not aware of the comments,” Antetokounmpo said. “At the end of the day, I don't follow politics that much. And the little that I follow, I try to keep my political views to myself and to my family. I'm here to, you know, win basketball games and not answer to [non-]basketball questions. But I wish both candidates best of luck.”
The child of Nigerian immigrants, Antetokounmpo was born in Athens, Greece, in 1994. His parents had left their home in Lagos to move to Greece, where they struggled for money and food and remained at risk of deportation for years.
Shortly before he was set to be drafted and move to the United States to play in the NBA, Antetokounmpo was granted Greek citizenship. Since arriving to Milwaukee, Antetokounmpo transformed a franchise at risk of relocating to a perennial championship contender.
In 2021, Antetokounmpo, a two-time league MVP, led the Bucks to their first NBA title in 50 years and earned the honor of Finals MVP.
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