During the 2021 NBA finals, an average height reporter interviewed Bucks player, Giannis, after a game. He had to hold the microphone high up over his head to catch remarks from the over seven-foot player.
Giannis praised his fellow players, took little credit for the win and thanked his teammates for the opportunity to play well. After the interview, the reporter commented Giannis was a monument to modesty. His attitude got me really interested.
I'm not a sports fan. Can't tell Steff Curry from Patrick Mahomes. But suddenly I'm a fan. Giannis (I won't even try to spell or say his last name) is our city's hero. Sure, he's a first-class basketball player and champion. But to me, that's not the real story.
After reading Mirin Fader's book (Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA MVP), I see he's much more than a first-class athlete. He's a champion human being and his story is one we don't hear very often.
His parents emigrated from Nigeria to Greece where they had four children. They lived in severe poverty as stateless interlopers surviving by selling trinkets on the streets. All this while avoiding marauding gangs searching to kill black migrants.
From playing basketball for fun in the streets, Giannis rose to being noticed by professional team organizers. Since the children born to immigrants are not given citizenship in Greece, Giannis couldn't get a passport.
This impacted his problems in playing in tournaments around Europe. Same problem later in accepting the NBA draft and coming to America. This was believed to be solved through the efforts of Herb Kohl (former Wisconsin Senator and past owner of the Bucks) and John Kerry (then US Secretary of State).
His adjustment demonstrates his strength of character and deep values. His teammates and coaches marveled at what he didn't know, what he hadn't ever been exposed to.
For example, he was naive about food, enthralled with smoothies and fast food. He needed nutritional help to build his body mass, make this skinny kid gain weight and height that would propel him to stardom.
Back in Greece, he and his brother shared a pair of sneakers. It was all they had. Now in America, he wore the same sneakers day in and out; when they were worn-out, he taped them. This instead of wearing one of the over 80 pair he'd been given, now hoarded in a closet.
He sent most of his money back home to his family. And he wanted to be paid with a check. It took a long time for him to believe he really had money. He was so proud when he was able to buy a car but insisted it had to be a used one.
He rented a small two-bedroom apartment so he could accommodate his parents whenever they finally made it to America. He'd kept the master bedroom in perfect shape waiting for them and slept in the smaller second bedroom. Getting his parents here was his only goal. He was a lonely lost kid until they finally arrived.
Giannis is who he is due to the closeness and support of his family. Such a good example of someone who truly knows himself and knows what is really important.
Long after coming to America, he'd still wake in the morning thinking what if this all goes away and things go back to the way they were. This fear haunted him then and maybe still does. He's also wondered about other kids who didn't have the good fortune he's had and would never be discovered, escape their dire circumstances and enjoy the life he does.
We have a lot to learn from this humble young man and none of it has to do with his skills on the court. Perhaps it is a story of finding the oh-so-elusive American dream. But most prophetic is the advice given to him early on by a coach: don't become Americanized. I hope he follows that advice and remains the unique individual he is.
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