Giannis Antetokounmpo made his return to the court for Greece in an international friendly.
Earlier this month, basketball fans were left disappointed when Giannis Antetokounmpo sat out Greece’s international friendly with Nikola Jokic’s Serbia.
Antetokounmpo finally joined in the action on August 20, playing in his first game ahead of EuroBasket, which tips off in a week’s time.
It was Giannis’ first game since the Milwaukee Bucks‘ first round playoff exit at the hands of the Indiana Pacers.
Photo by NICK PALEOLOGOS/SOOC/AFP via Getty ImagesGiannis Antetokounmpo returns to action
Giannis Antetokounmpo returned to action to lead a 104-86 win over Latvia, who had beaten Luka Doncic’s Slovenia at the weekend.
Giannis posted a double-double, scoring 25 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. He scored 20 points in the first half.
In total Giannis played just 15 minutes, and he clearly made the most of his time on the court, going 9-for-12 shooting.
He added 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks, for a productive all round night.
Greece had won two and lost two of their warm-up games prior to this one. Giannis Antetokounmpo is their major star, who takes them up a level.
Greek outlet Sport24 posted video highlights, with the message: “Giannis is unstoppable”.
Their write-up added: “His presence dramatically changes and spectacularly upgrades the team’s status, regardless of what happens in the upcoming EuroBasket.”
Sportal wrote: “Giannis Antetokounmpo started as a starter and played as if not a day had passed. From the first quarter, the Greek superstar had 8 points, 3 rebounds, one assist, one steal and two blocks, showing absolute dominance on the floor.”
News.it Greece wrote: “Despite playing less than 16 minutes in the match, Giannis Antetokounmpo was the best player on the court for as long as he was on the court and finished the match with incredible statistics, being the MVP of the match.”
It is clear that with Giannis on the team, Greece will be an exciting team to watch at EuroBasket, and he clearly missed being away from the court.
When the NBA begins again, the Milwaukee Bucks will be waiting. But for now, Giannis is all-in with Greece.