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"MJ played 15 years, won six titles - the other nine years, was it a failure?" - A frustrated Giannis Antetokounmpo gives a passionate response after the #1 seeded Milwaukee Bucks get eliminated in the first round
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Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo was not in an amicable mood, and understandably so. After all, his Bucks—owners of the league’s best record after the regular season and the odds-on favorite to win the NBA title season—had just been eliminated from the NBA Playoffs by the eighth-seeded Miami Heat. And so, when asked by a reporter if the season was an abject failure, Giannis got testy and tried his very best to keep composed.
Steps to success
Giannis then took a deep breath before answering that no, the season was not a failure. He then went on to cite Michael Jordan’s struggles during his early years in the league and how Jordan’s resilience paved the way for him to become one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
"It's not a failure; it's steps to success," Giannis said. "There's always steps to it. Michael Jordan played 15 years, won six championships. The other nine years was a failure? That's what you're telling me?"
No failure in sports
Giannis went on to describe the simplistic nature of the game in that one was going to win while the other was going to lose.
"It's a wrong question; there's no failure in sports. There's good days, bad days. Some days you're able to be successful, some days you're not. Some days it's your turn, some days, it's not your turn. And that's what sports is about. You don't always win. Sometimes other people win. And this year, somebody else is going to win, simple as that."
Words fail in describing how disappointing this result was for the Milwaukee Bucks. They had an NBA title in sight but lost track of a rolling Miami Heat squad that had their sights squared on unseating the top seed.
