Antetokounmpo: “One of the best experiences of my life – I hope to be a flag bearer again”

His feelings about his participation in the Olympic Games with the National team, Yannis Antetokounmpo revealed in a podcast of his brother Thanasis, while underlining that he would like again in the future to be able to take part and be the flag bearer of the Olympic mission again.

In detail what he said…



On the opening ceremony of the Olympics and being a flag bearer:



“I saw my mom. There is a related video. There were 500 people there, shouting, we had so many boats. Of course, we came out first. My mum made the sound she makes and I said ‘there’s my mum’. That was one of the best days of my life. It’s an honor to represent the national team and an even bigger honor to come out on top and carry the flag.

I didn’t know how many athletes admired me. It’s crazy. We are talking about professional athletes, Olympic gold medalists. They told me that “your story inspires us, we admire you, the way you work, we want to follow in your footsteps”. I felt that my back, which is big and I carry a weight and now I have to carry even more to be an example the next generation. It’s a bigger feat. We’re talking about athletes who looked at me like that.

Certainly a lot of athletes look up to players like LeBron, Curry, Jordan. We also looked at other athletes in Greece in the same way, such as Galis, Diamantidis and Spanoulis. But it was one of the best experiences of my life, a great honor for me and my family to represent Greece as I had the flag. And I hope I can do it again. Maybe I won’t make it, but I hope I can do it again.”

To improve his game:



“We can talk about a lot of players you have to be, like Doncic, Jokic, Gilgeous-Alexander, Embiid, Morad, Booker. But there is no other John. There has never been another player like me. I’m not 135 pounds like Shaquille O’Neal. At most I’m 110 kg. I play like I’m heavier.

I don’t want to be Durant, Doncic, or Gilgeous-Alexander. They obviously have great things in their game, they are talented. But there has never been a player like me. So why should I switch? I just need to develop Giannis. That’s my reasoning and it works just fine.”

On his approach to life:



“You only live once. Someday I’ll have a shirt with no pockets and you’ll be in a coffin. One time in a game there were a few seconds left in the offense and I had a lane to go to the basket and I’m like, “damn, I’m going to shoot a three-pointer.” I did an airball. Another would lose morale. I didn’t care. I’ve airballed, I’ve missed shots, I’ve made fouls, I’ve missed game-winning shots. I don’t care. You only live once.

I believe that winning is in my nature. I love to win. I don’t care about my stats, my achievements, I love to win. It’s in my nature. Whether I’m playing a regular match, a friendly, the playoffs, an in-season game, a family double in the national team, or with my children, I play with the same aggression. I can’t change that, it’s my nature.”

For his motivational quote:



“I wake up every day with a positive mindset and think that I want to have a good time. Either playing basketball or being with my family. I want to enjoy the moment, because I don’t take anything for granted.

I’m not the best mid-range shooter in the world or the best player in the world. And when you play badly, it’s not that you’re bad. They are never as good or as bad as they say. You have to have a steady approach, fall in love with the process and when you do that, everything will follow.

I don’t fall in love with statistics. I’m falling in love with the process and thinking that I need to improve in rebounding or defense. That’s how I’ll get to the next pitch. This is true for everything in life. This is what I tell my children too.”