Giannis celebrations draws thousands
Fans fill Fiserv Forum plaza, nearby balconies to honor the league NBA MVP.
Giannis Antetokounmpo – Bucks star, NBA MVP, sneaker impresario and the toast of Milwaukee – had a few words of advice Sunday afternoon for two lucky fans.
As Andre Moore and Tatiana Edwards of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee struggled to hold up a piece of hardware, Antetokounmpo smiled and said, "It's kind of heavy."
Of course, Antetokounmpo knows how much his MVP trophy weighs.
As he held up the MVP trophy in the outdoor plaza of Fiserv Forum Sunday afternoon, several thousand Bucks fans hollered and cheered, craned for a closer look and snapped photos with their phones at the Giannis MVP Celebration.
Wearing white shorts and a white Tshirt emblazoned with "Freak" and the Nike swoosh in red, Antetokounmpo answered questions from Bucks play-byplay announcer Jim Paschke and asked a favor of the crowd.
"After this day don't call me 'MVP' until I win next year," Antetokounmpo joked.
Probably won't happen.
The crowd dutifully chanted "MVP" just as Fiserv Forum crowds have done for months.
Among them was Dan Bernstein, who wore a white and blue "Freak" Nike T-shirt and a Bucks hat sporting deer antlers he bought for $48 at the Bucks Pro Shop on Sunday,
"I've been a fan of Giannis since we drafted him. I even named my Labradoodle (Yanni) after him," said Bernstein. "That was 5 1/2 years ago. I just had a feeling he was going to be great."
Bernstein meant Antetokounmpo, and not his dog, was destined for greatness.
"I'm excited to see him get his MVP trophy. I also love that he loves Milwaukee so much," said Bernstein.
Samantha Piggee brought her 7-yearold son Keyvon Carson, who was dressed in a green "Straight Outta Milwaukee" Bucks T-Shirt and Bucks sunglasses.
"My baby loves Giannis," said Piggee, after snapping selfies with her son. "This is all he wants to see."
Jessie Hobbs wore a "414" Bucks Tshirt celebrating the team's 50 years and came with her family, swaying to the beats of a DJ before Antetokounmpo took the stage.
"We got a famous name going on in Milwaukee. He's a blessing to us and he's a blessing to the team," said Hobbs.
Fans filled the entire Fiserv Forum Plaza and crowded the balconies of sports bars overlooking the plaza.
They wore Bucks hats and T-shirts in a variety of colors. Quite a few pulled on Bucks home and away jerseys. Not surprisingly most were Antetokounmpo's No. 34.
One person brought an umbrella as a sun shade; naturally, it was a Bucks umbrella. Many in the crowd took selfies, including Antetokounmpo, who called up his three brothers to the stage, held up his phone and snapped a pic as excited photo-bombing fans waved and hooted.
Paschke asked Antetokounmpo about a portrait held up in the crowd of his late father, Charles, who died in 2017.
"I know he's watching and I know he's happy," Antetokounmpo said.
Noting that Antetokounmpo told ESPN the day before that he thinks he's only at 60% of his potential, Paschke asked what needs to be improved.
As Antetokounmpo replied that he needs to work on his shooting, dozens of fans lifted their hands in the air to mimic shooting. Yes, even the league MVP thinks he needs to work on fundamentals.
"I work my butt off every single day.
I do it for you guys, I do it for my team, I do it for my teammates," he said.
A few fans held up bright orange Nike "Freak 1 'All Bros' " sneakers. Antetokounmpo, however, wore a white "Alphabet Soup" version of his Freak 1s. As Paschke asked him about his Nike sneaker design, video of Antetokounmpo's kicks was shown on large screens, inducing some in the crowd to "ooh" and "aah."
Last year, Antetokounmpo told "60 Minutes" about growing up poor in Greece and sharing a pair of basketball shoes with his brother Thanasis. Paschke marveled at how much Antetokounmpo's life has changed in a few years.
"You had to share shoes and now you have your own. That tells us how far Giannis Antetokounmpo has come," said Paschke.
"I've got to keep working hard and more blessings will come my way," Antetokounmpo said.
After the event, Antetokounmpo visited a small merchandise trailer to hand out boxes of his new shoes to really lucky Bucks fans.
Deshea Agee brought his sons Nathan, 11, and Deshea Jr., 5, to the celebration because Nathan is a big fan of Antetokounmpo. Last season, Nathan managed to get his Bucks jersey signed by Antetokounmpo "and he cried all the way back to the car after getting his signature," said Agee.
Agee said he'll eventually buy his son a pair of Antetokounmpo's shoes.
"I'm a huge Bucks fan and I wanted to share this experience with my sons," Agee said shortly after Antetokounmpo left the stage.