He’s come a long way
There was a great moment immediately after the Bucks’ Game 6 win over the Suns when ESPN’s cameras captured Giannis sitting by himself in a seat behind the basket, overcome with emotion.
The story of Giannis’s journey to the NBA is well known by now, but still amazing. Knowing where he came from and the kind of shy, skinny 18-year-old he was when he first arrived in Milwaukee makes his Finals breakout especially remarkable.
Take, for example, this anecdote from a March 2014 Sports Illustrated article by Chris Mannix:
In December, Antetokounmpo took a taxi from his suburban Milwaukee home to a nearby Western Union. It was a game day, and Antetokounmpo wanted to wire some money to his family in Athens before heading to the arena. He went to the ATM, withdrew some cash and sent it. When he went back to take out more for cab fare, he discovered he had reached his limit. Panicked, Antetokounmpo decided to run the two or so miles to the Bradley. A young married couple pulled up alongside him.
"Are you the Bucks rookie?" they asked.
"Yes," Antetokounmpo said.
"Do you need a ride?"
"Yes, please," Antetokounmpo replied. He hopped into the backseat of the SUV and was dropped off at the arena's front door.
The woman who picked Giannis up was the aunt of Aaron Gleeman, a Twins writer for The Athletic. After the Bucks’ win, Gleeman shared an email from his aunt detailing her encounter with Giannis, who was also underdressed for the cold Milwaukee weather when he decided to jog to the arena.
It’s easy to envision Giannis, having arrived in the United States only six months earlier, getting flustered when faced with the prospect of having to get to a game on time with no money in his pocket. But it’s endearing that his solution was to just use his own two feet to get there. During these Finals, not only did we witness Giannis take his game to new heights, he also bolstered his reputation as a down-to-earth superstar when his press conference answer about ego and humility went viral. It’s that sort of thoughtfulness that makes him so likable.
Giannis has obviously come a long way since his rookie year, but part of what makes him such a fun player to root for is that, underneath the 50 pounds of muscle he’s added since then, he still seems a lot like the kind of guy who would hitch a ride with a stranger and be awestruck by smoothies.
The best of SI
The Bucks’ long game paid off and led them to their first championship in 50 years. ... Projecting all 60 NBA draft picks with just over a week to go. ... The Rose Bowl might pose a problem for the 12-team college football playoff. ... What should viewers make of the unprecedented pandemic Olympics?
Around the sports world
Deion Sanders cut an interview short at SWAC media day because he didn’t like being called “Deion” by a reporter. ... Sanders also blocked a newspaper reporter from covering media day after the reporter wrote a story about a domestic violence charge against a recruit. ... See how many athletes each state is sending to the Olympics. ... A Bears fan who said he needed to survive his gunshot wound so he could watch Justin Fields play just got to meet the rookie QB.
If you watch just one Giannis highlight from Game 6, make it this one
An estimated 65,000 people crammed themselves into the area around the Bucks’ arena
And they went wild after the game
Cool move by Monty Williams to congratulate the Bucks in their locker room
Translation: “a lot”
The USWNT got thumped in its Olympic opener
Early candidate for biggest college football upset of the year
There was absolutely no way the Seattle NHL expansion draft would not feature fish being thrown
Andrew McCutchen didn’t move a muscle
Soccer in South America is on another level
The new uniform isn’t the only thing Brady has changed since 2016
Not sports
A Scottish police officer called for backup to help with a “drone” following her that was really just the planet Jupiter. ... An Australian man escaped a mandatory hotel quarantine by tying bed sheets together and rappelling down from the fourth floor. ... A 100-pound, bright orange tropical fish was discovered washed up on an Oregon beach.
The opening of Terminator 2, remastered
(I watched this movie over the weekend and the special effects in that first scene are laughable.)
A good song
I’ll be out of town for the next week or so, but Hot Clicks will continue apace. Michael Shapiro, Chris Chavez and Andrew Gastelum will be filling in for me.
Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.
"story" - Google News
July 21, 2021 at 09:01PM
https://ift.tt/2TpDZAq
Giannis Antetokounmpo Once Had to Hitch a Ride to a Game With Strangers - Sports Illustrated
"story" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2YrOfIK
https://ift.tt/2xwebYA
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Giannis Antetokounmpo Once Had to Hitch a Ride to a Game With Strangers - Sports Illustrated"
Post a Comment