Almost every NBA athlete has a story for their ‘Welcome to the NBA moment’. It’s usually described as the moment a newly drafted player realizes that he is actually in the NBA, the toughest basketball league in the world. This moment of realization more often than not comes after a veteran player humbles the rookie on the court.
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Giannis Antetokounmpo’s moment of realization was handed to him by Kyrie Irving. During a conversation at an event, the Greek Freak detailed what happened.
In Giannis’ rookie year, he faced the Cleveland Cavaliers on December 20th, 2013. Although he was a top talent, Giannis was nervous because it was his first game ever.
He said, “Went out there to do the pregame warmup, and all of a sudden I see Kyrie Irving coming out. This is my first game EVER. I was just playing Kyrie Irving on 2k the year before! … I think he gave us like 40 [points].”
Bucks superstar @Giannis_An34 describes his WELCOME to the NBA moment:
"Went out there to do the pregame warmup, and all of a sudden I see Kyrie Irving coming out. This is my first game EVER. I was just playing Kyrie Irving on 2k the year before! … I think he gave us like 40… pic.twitter.com/2zbrLxrePZ
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 24, 2024
Kyrie finished the game with 39 points and a three-point win over the Bucks. The Bucks star could only manage six points in that game as he witnessed the eight-time All-Star hand him a moment he’ll remember forever. Giannis was only 19 in his rookie year, and he was schooled by a 21-year-old Kyrie at the time.
