Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo reacted to a story from Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki where he revealed that he didn’t want Dallas to pick Antetokounmpo in the 2013 NBA Draft.
Antetokounmpo took the story well, sharing that he’s not even sure if he would’ve drafted himself back then.
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While at the time Nowitzki may not have been positive about how a young Antetokounmpo could help the Mavs win in his later years with the franchise, there’s no doubt that drafting the two-time league MVP likely would have ultimately paid dividends.
Antetokounmpo has turned himself into one of the NBA’s biggest stars, winning a title with the Bucks in the 2020-21 season. He was named the NBA Finals MVP that season and already has eight All-Star selections and eight All-NBA selections in his career.
This season, Antetokounmpo is putting together an impressive scoring display for the Bucks, averaging 32.7 points per game while shooting 61.4 percent from the field. In addition to that, the veteran forward is averaging 11.5 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game.
He has also led the Bucks to the final game of the NBA Cup on Tuesday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder after Milwaukee knocked off the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks in games last week. The Bucks can become the second team to capture an NBA Cup title (the Los Angeles Lakers won it last season) since the league introduced the concept ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.
Nowitzki, a Hall of Famer and NBA champion, ended up playing in the NBA through the 2018-19 season, and he actually spent time playing with Luka Doncic after Dallas acquired the star guard in a draft-day trade with the Atlanta Hawks. However, one can wonder if he would have seen more career success if he ended up playing with Antetokounmpo at some point in his career.
While Nowitzki may have been wrong about Antetokounmpo back in 2013, he still accomplished a ton during his NBA career, earning 14 All-Star nods. He was also named the league MVP in the 2006-07 season.
