Giannis Antetokounmpo Doesn’t Believe He’s the Face of the NBA

At age 27, Giannis Antetokounmpo is clearly on the top rung of NBA superstars, winning back-to-back MVP awards in 2019 and ’20 and bringing the Bucks an NBA title in 2021. Even so, the Greek superstar is not enamored with the spotlight.

During an appearance on Serge Ibaka’s How Hungry Are You?, a cooking and interview show hosted by Antetokounmpo’s fellow Bucks forward on Sportsnet in Canada, Giannis revealed that while he believes he’s one of the “faces of the league,” he certainly doesn’t claim the top spot. 

“Do I feel like I’m one of the faces of the league? Yes,” Antetokounmpo told Ibaka, before Ibaka clarified that he was asking if he believes he’s the face of the league.

“LeBron is,” Giannis said. “LeBron’s still playing. Steph just won a championship, KD’s still hooping. Embiid’s killing. Jokic back-to-back MVP. Luka Magic. There’s a lot of people out there.”

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Antetokounmpo certainly is chasing success on the court, but he values privacy in his private life. In that way, he’d rather model his career after another soft-spoken superstar who left the league as one of its all-time greats: Spurs legend Tim Duncan.

“I want to be like Tim Duncan,” Antetokounmpo said. “I want to disappear. You put me in the face of the league. I’m trying to disappear from it.”

Whether or not Giannis wants to be the face of the NBA, his play puts him squarely in the discussion. So far this season, he’s averaging 31.3 points, 11.8 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game for the 10–3 Bucks.

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