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Milwaukee Bucks superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo dominated the shorthanded Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday as his team secured a comfortable 144-122 victory. Afterward, the two-time MVP gave some special gifts to Real Madrid soccer star Vinicius Junior, who was sitting courtside.
Antetokounmpo recorded a game-high 32 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and two blocks on 83.3% shooting in just 30 minutes.
Upon the conclusion of his impressive performance, he gave Vini Jr. a pair of his game-worn, $140-worth Freak 5 shoes and his signed game-worn jersey.
“My brother, shoes. One second, I give you the jersey. You get the whole package. You get the whole package, my brother,” Antetokounmpo said.
The soccer star appeared grateful for the gesture, as he grinned and laughed before thanking Antetokounmpo. Likewise, the Bucks superstar thanked Vini Jr. for his support.
“I appreciate you. Thank you for coming. No. 1 Brazilian player in the world. No. 1, right here. No. 1.,” Antetokounmpo said.
Afterward, the two stars posed for a photo together. Check out their interaction below:
Giannis Antetokounmpo helps Bucks get back on track following Christmas Day loss to Knicks
Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks entered Wednesday coming off a 129-122 Christmas Day loss to the New York Knicks on Monday. Following that loss, Bucks coach Adrian Griffin questioned his team’s competition level. However, that wasn’t a problem on Wednesday against the shorthanded Nets.
Playing on the second night of a back-to-back, Brooklyn rested most of its key players, including three starters. So, Milwaukee primarily matched up against reserves and two-way players.
The Nets were led by two-way player Jalen Wilson, who finished with a team-high 21 points and 10 rebounds on 38.5% shooting.
After the game, Antetokounmpo gave credit to the relatively unknown Nets players who stepped up and played increased roles on short notice.
“They competed hard,” Antetokounmpo said. “I don’t know most of them but definitely I’ll learn them after today because they made it extremely, extremely tough for us.”
Milwaukee (23-8) next plays the Cleveland Cavaliers (18-13) on the road on Friday. Meanwhile, Brooklyn (15-16) will travel to take on the Washington Wizards (5-25) on the road on Friday.
