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Giannis on 'The Last Dance' Takeaways: 'Chasing Greatness Is a Life Mission'
May 1, 2020
Among the many people paying close attention to The Last Dance on ESPN is Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The reigning NBA MVP asked his Twitter followers their thoughts about the documentary through four episodes before offering his biggest takeaway:
The documentary series has thus far shown the inner-workings of the 1990s Chicago Bulls teams that won six championships in eight seasons. Michael Jordan and his never-ending pursuit of greatness and winning has been at the center of everything.
ESPN's Eric Woodyard recalled comments from Antetokounmpo after the Bucks' Nov. 18 win over the Bulls at the United Center where Jordan's No. 23 and Scottie Pippen's No. 33 hang in the rafters after being retired by the franchise:
"I try to lock in and focus on what I've got to do. But yeah, previous years, like when I saw No. 23—and not just 23, when I saw 33—that was a guy I used to talk to a lot, Scottie. It definitely motivated me. [Chicago is] a great basketball city. It's a city that Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen played in, so I had that extra juice in me."
Antetokounmpo has achieved tremendous individual success with one MVP award on his mantle and the possibility for a second one this season. The Bucks star ranks third in the NBA with 29.6 points and 13.7 rebounds per game in 2019-20.
The next step for Antetokounmpo will be getting over the hump in the playoffs. Milwaukee advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals last season but lost in six games to the Toronto Raptors. The team had the best record in the NBA (53-12) when the regular season was suspended in March because of the coronavirus pandemic.
