Giannis Antetokounmpo To Work Out With LeBron James?

By Adam McGee | Apr 9, 2016

Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) defends Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) in the first quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /

With a summer of hard work ahead for Giannis Antetokounmpo, is working out with LeBron James a good option?

As the season begins to wind down for the Milwaukee Bucks, the focus of many has started to shift towards an important summer for the team.

For fans it’s events like the NBA Draft, free agency and Summer League that will soak up the bulk of the attention, but nothing may play a bigger impact on the team’s future than the work that will go unseen.

Of course, I am talking about the summer of hard work that awaits those already under contract with Milwaukee. With the frantic pace of the NBA season, it’s rare for players and coaches alike to get time to work on improving skills and gaining a greater understanding of what is required of them. That’s where the offseason comes into play.

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After a breakout season, Giannis Antetokounmpo will look to put in another summer of hard work to improve even further. The thought of further improvements from Antetokounmpo is the stuff of dreams for Bucks fans, but how can he make it a reality?

One idea that it seems is at the forefront of the Greek’s mind is to put himself up against and learn from the best in the league, potentially even LeBron James.

Following the Bucks loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier in the week, Antetokounmpo told Cleveland.com:

"If I had the chance, the opportunity to work with him (James), of course I would. You’d have to work with him. He’s one of the best players in the world. One summer working out with LeBron, you can learn a lot. It would help you moving forward. If I had the chance, of course I’ll grab the opportunity to try to work with him."

What are the chances of it becoming a reality though. Giannis says that depends on LeBron’s likely jam-packed schedule.

"It’s not up to me. It’s up to LeBron. I think LeBron has 150 times more things to do than me over the summer. If he has time, I’ll definitely have the time."

Of all of the game’s superstars not many are known for being more willing to spend time with their fellow pros than LeBron James is. For many who grew up on a steady diet of Magic Johnson, Larry Bird or even Michael Jordan, this is one of their main sources of criticism for James and his peers.

It makes no difference to James that Antetokounmpo is a player he could be going toe to toe with for the rest of his career, it doesn’t even bother him that they’re in the same conference. When asked if he’d be open to practicing with Giannis, James replied:

"Absolutely [Giannis and I can get together]. Y’all know I got an open-door policy."

For many Bucks fans the excitement that comes with the man who has long been the league’s biggest star recognizing Giannis as someone worth working out with may be tampered slightly by a concern.

Does Giannis give away some of his edge by allowing LeBron to take an up close and personal look at his game?

The best way to answer that is to look at some of the Bucks who worked out with players from opposing teams last summer.

Khris Middleton spent some time with Dwyane Wade and has gone on to have comfortably the best season of his career, displaying many sides to his game that were never previously apparent.

"Happy Labor Day from our hard working squad to you!!"

Look at the picture at the bottom right corner of the above tweet. No, your eyes aren’t deceiving you, that’s Miles Plumlee alongside Tim Duncan. Whatever Plumlee worked on last summer has paid dividends this season as he’s grown into a player who many in Milwaukee would hope will stick around for many years to come.

The potential benefits of Giannis picking up some of the tricks of the trade from James may be even greater again. Giannis is in a unique position where so many of his greatest strengths are down to his rare physical attributes.

This is “The Greek Freak” after all. There’s so much of what he brings to the table that you can’t just learn how to account for.

If Giannis has an opportunity to learn from LeBron, he should seize it with both hands. There aren’t many players better equipped to advise Giannis of how to handle an increasing number of double teams, but even more important is any advice James can give to Giannis in terms of being a ball-handling forward.

Next: Giannis Antetokounmpo: The Pride Of Greece

Antetokounmpo has another big summer ahead of him regardless, but with the help of James it could be one that pushes him into the league’s elite.

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