As he tweeted himself, Giannis Antetokounmpo reunited with his younger brother and recent NBA champion, Kostas Antetokounmpo, while in Greece.
Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, as well as his older brother Thanasis, may have fallen short of winning an NBA title this season. But it was elsewhere in the Antetokounmpo family who made history down in the bubble.
With the Los Angeles Lakers vanquishing the Miami Heat last weekend to become the 2019-20 NBA champions, Giannis and Thanasis’ younger brother Kostas, a two-way player for the Lakers, earned himself a ring and celebrated alongside the likes of Anthony Davis, LeBron James, etc.
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By doing so, Kostas became the first Greek-born player to win an NBA championship and his older brother Giannis commemorated the milestone by congratulating Kostas in light of the Lakers winning this year’s NBA Finals.
With the season officially over and his and the Lakers’ mission now completed, the 20-year-old received quite the welcome when reuniting with his brothers, his mother Veronica, and the whole Antetokounmpo family upon arriving back home in Greece Friday night.
Giannis welcoming back his brother Kostas to Greece fresh off his first championship 🙏
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 16, 2020
(via @Giannis_An34) pic.twitter.com/bUNFSZkeMj
Kostas didn’t see much of any time with the Lakers on the NBA level over the course of the 2019-20 season as he totaled 20 minutes. It was on assignment with the G League where the vast majority of his minutes and reps came this year and he averaged 14.1 points on 62.3 percent shooting from the field, was 6-for-39 from three (15.4 percent), 7.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals over his 37 appearances with the South Bay Lakers.
Still, the youngest Antetokounmpo currently in the NBA had an incredible opportunity to experience a ride of a lifetime and become an NBA champion throughout the Lakers’ run this year.
The fact that both the Bucks and Lakers enjoyed such successful runs throughout the regular season raised the possibility that we could have seen an all-Antetokounmpo NBA Finals. That was the case until the season was disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic and the Bucks’ season fell apart upon coming against the Heat in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
While Giannis is currently teammates with his brother Thanasis, he’s spoken on the record about one day playing alongside Kostas in the NBA as well. Who can forget the firestorm that generated from this Giannis interview during this year’s NBA All-Star Weekend?
Of course, questions regarding Giannis’ long-term future has significantly grown in light of the Bucks’ disappointing playoff finish, but the same applies for Kostas’ future in Los Angeles as he will be a restricted free agent this offseason after the end of his two-way contract. Given the volatility of the G League and two-way contracts in general, it’s very possible Kostas will be on the move again.
Whatever Kostas’ future in the NBA holds for him, he certainly capped off this year in style and soon enough, Giannis and Thanasis may be holding their own NBA rings as soon as next year.