Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA Champion
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- Create Date：2022-04-20 09:51:44
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Mirin Fader
- ISBN：0306924110
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Summary
The story of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s extraordinary rise from poverty in Athens， Greece， to superstardom in America with the Milwaukee Bucks—becoming one of the most transcendent players in history and an NBA Champion—from award-winning basketball reporter and feature writer at The Ringer Mirin Fader。 Now in paperback with a new Epilogue。
As the face of the NBA’s new world order， Giannis Antetokounmpo has overcome unfathomable obstacles to become a symbol of hope for people all over the world; the personification of the American Dream。 But his backstory remains largely untold。 Fader unearths new information about the childhood that shaped “The Greek Freak”—from sleeping side by side with his brothers to selling trinkets on the street with his family to the racism he experienced。 Antetokounmpo grew up in an era when Golden Dawn， Greece’s far-right， anti-immigrant party， patrolled his neighborhood， and his status as an illegal immigrant largely prevented him from playing for the country’s top clubs， making his NBA rise all the more improbable。 Fader tells a deeply human story of how an unknown， skinny， Black Greek teen， who played in the country’s lowest pro division and was seen as a draft gamble， transformed his body and his game into MVP material。
Antetokounmpo’s story has been framed as a feel-good narrative in which everyone has embraced him—watching him grow up， sign a five-year supermax contract extension worth $228 million， and lead the underdog Bucks to the NBA Championship in 2021。 Giannis reveals a more nuanced story: how lonely and isolated he felt， adjusting to America and the NBA early in his career; the complexity of grappling with his Black and Greek identities; how he is so hard on himself and his shortcomings—a drive that fuels him every day; and the responsibility he feels to be a nurturing role model for his younger brothers。 Fader illustrates a more vulnerable star than most people know， a person who has evolved triumphantly into all of his roles: father， brother， son， teammate， and global icon。
**Instant New York Times Bestseller， Los Angeles Times Bestseller， Wall Street Journal Bestseller， USA Today Bestseller， Publishers Weekly Bestseller**
**Mirin Fader Selected as the 2021 Sports Media Author of the Year by The Big Lead**
As the face of the NBA’s new world order， Giannis Antetokounmpo has overcome unfathomable obstacles to become a symbol of hope for people all over the world; the personification of the American Dream。 But his backstory remains largely untold。 Fader unearths new information about the childhood that shaped “The Greek Freak”—from sleeping side by side with his brothers to selling trinkets on the street with his family to the racism he experienced。 Antetokounmpo grew up in an era when Golden Dawn， Greece’s far-right， anti-immigrant party， patrolled his neighborhood， and his status as an illegal immigrant largely prevented him from playing for the country’s top clubs， making his NBA rise all the more improbable。 Fader tells a deeply human story of how an unknown， skinny， Black Greek teen， who played in the country’s lowest pro division and was seen as a draft gamble， transformed his body and his game into MVP material。
Antetokounmpo’s story has been framed as a feel-good narrative in which everyone has embraced him—watching him grow up， sign a five-year supermax contract extension worth $228 million， and lead the underdog Bucks to the NBA Championship in 2021。 Giannis reveals a more nuanced story: how lonely and isolated he felt， adjusting to America and the NBA early in his career; the complexity of grappling with his Black and Greek identities; how he is so hard on himself and his shortcomings—a drive that fuels him every day; and the responsibility he feels to be a nurturing role model for his younger brothers。 Fader illustrates a more vulnerable star than most people know， a person who has evolved triumphantly into all of his roles: father， brother， son， teammate， and global icon。
**Instant New York Times Bestseller， Los Angeles Times Bestseller， Wall Street Journal Bestseller， USA Today Bestseller， Publishers Weekly Bestseller**
**Mirin Fader Selected as the 2021 Sports Media Author of the Year by The Big Lead**
Reviews
Justin Howard
，
Well researched and well written words about an awesome person， 5/5 would read again
Claire Olejnik
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Usually not a huge fan of memoirs but this one was really well written。 Had all the “fun facts” every bucks/Giannis fan is looking for。 A perfect pre-playoffs read！
Epic Bulgarian
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Amazing bookLoved everything about it。 Made me into more of a bigger Giannis fan than I already was！ 10/10 read！My only gripe is that this book （for obvious reasons） doesnt cover their 2021 championship run。 Man that would have truly been a storybook ending for the ages！
Ann
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Highly recommend this book。 Giannis has an incredible story of hard work and sacrifice。 It's amazing how his roots and strong family values have kept him so humble， despite being one of the best to play the game。 The things that he and his family have overcome and worked through to live the American dream are awe inspiring。 He deserves it all and more。 Highly recommend this book。 Giannis has an incredible story of hard work and sacrifice。 It's amazing how his roots and strong family values have kept him so humble， despite being one of the best to play the game。 The things that he and his family have overcome and worked through to live the American dream are awe inspiring。 He deserves it all and more。 。。。more
Heidi Wacker
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I listened to the audiobook。 Not the best written or read， but his story tells itself！ Highly recommend！
Angela
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Being from Milwaukee I already knew some of Giannis's story。。。 however nothing could have prepared me for the inspiration and awe I'd take away from this family's story。 Simply remarkable。 Couldn't put the book down and have more respect than ever for this amazing athlete and his family。 Being from Milwaukee I already knew some of Giannis's story。。。 however nothing could have prepared me for the inspiration and awe I'd take away from this family's story。 Simply remarkable。 Couldn't put the book down and have more respect than ever for this amazing athlete and his family。 。。。more
will
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Inspirational Life StoryGiannis takes us on a journey through his life that is very challenging， yet inspirational to anyone who is looking for a light at the end of the tunnel。 I have a new found respect for Giannis。
Jason Sudnik
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Giannis’ story is inspiring， and the amount of background the author covers is incredible， but this is a hard read。 It reads like an average college level essay written by his biggest fanboy（girl）， with a million trite cliches and the same repeated anecdotes over and over。 You could skim half this book and still come away with the same impression。 Also， why do you have to tell me what every single person you interview is currently doing？ It dates the book in a way that makes it seem out of date Giannis’ story is inspiring， and the amount of background the author covers is incredible， but this is a hard read。 It reads like an average college level essay written by his biggest fanboy（girl）， with a million trite cliches and the same repeated anecdotes over and over。 You could skim half this book and still come away with the same impression。 Also， why do you have to tell me what every single person you interview is currently doing？ It dates the book in a way that makes it seem out of date less than a year after being published。 Could have been so much better… 。。。more
Lucas
，
There’s some really good writing and reporting in here but wow is it deflating to finish the book and realize the 2020 season will be rushed through， and that the book ends before the 2021 season where he wins the championship and this entire narrative arc we’ve been building to should be occurring。 So it results in a book that is a bit uneven， spending too much time on some parts of his life and very little on more recent ones。 Fundamentally， it just was published too early in his career， by at There’s some really good writing and reporting in here but wow is it deflating to finish the book and realize the 2020 season will be rushed through， and that the book ends before the 2021 season where he wins the championship and this entire narrative arc we’ve been building to should be occurring。 So it results in a book that is a bit uneven， spending too much time on some parts of his life and very little on more recent ones。 Fundamentally， it just was published too early in his career， by at least one season， maybe more。Nonetheless I did enjoy Fader’s writing overall。 I felt like I got a good sense of Giannis’s personality， how he became the MVP level player he became， and learned more about the horrific racial dynamics he faced growing up black in Greece。 Would have loved to see Jason Kidd participate as a source， but seems like he didn’t want to given how he’s portrayed。 。。。more
Abbigail
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Loved this book！ Took a bit to get into， but I loved how it told the story of Giannis as a person。 Not only that， but it highlighted the growth of the Bucks organization， the coaches， his family， etc。 An all-encompassing book that has allowed me to gain even more respect for Giannis as both a person and a competitor。 Great read！
Kris
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Giannis has been through a lot to get to this point in his life！ An enjoyable and engaging read from cover to cover， particularly the “America” chapter， which had me laughing out loud numerous times 😅。
Alex Gile
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Bucks in six！
Kimberly
，
If I could rate this by half points， I'd give it 3。5/5。 Giannis' story is very compelling， but the author was had second that were redundant and citations for people being quoted that were unnecessarily descriptive。 If I could rate this by half points， I'd give it 3。5/5。 Giannis' story is very compelling， but the author was had second that were redundant and citations for people being quoted that were unnecessarily descriptive。 。。。more
Maggie Mackin
，
The biography of Giannis is inspiring， but I became impatient with Fader's writing which felt circular and repetitive。 The biography of Giannis is inspiring， but I became impatient with Fader's writing which felt circular and repetitive。 。。。more
Megan Maier
，
Favorite book I’ve read this year by far。
Jonathan
，
It's weird to read about an athlete and think， "that guy's my hero，" when you aren't ten years old anymore and also the athlete is half your age， only then you think that at ten years old the athlete was dodging Rising Dawn thugs on his way back from selling sunglasses on the streets so his family could eat dinner， and somehow he can still joke about a million things like buying 50 nuggets to celebrate winning a championship， and so you tell yourself not to sweat it， Giannis is a hero， and you'r It's weird to read about an athlete and think， "that guy's my hero，" when you aren't ten years old anymore and also the athlete is half your age， only then you think that at ten years old the athlete was dodging Rising Dawn thugs on his way back from selling sunglasses on the streets so his family could eat dinner， and somehow he can still joke about a million things like buying 50 nuggets to celebrate winning a championship， and so you tell yourself not to sweat it， Giannis is a hero， and you're able to sleep again。 。。。more
Bryan Rainstein
，
An interesting profile on the life that fueled the legend。 A bit repetitive at times but seems to be exhaustively researched and tells an amazing story！
Lexi Matthews
，
furiously googling “is alex antetokounmpo single” immediately upon flipping the last page
John Gaul
，
Amazing & Inspiring Story。I really loved the effort put in by the author to show the many aspects of Giannis’ story， most of which being family， basketball as a career， immigration， and racism。 It really goes to show that great genetics don’t result in a successful future without hard work， dedication， and a great support system。 It’s sad to see the level of racism still occurring in the world and how immigrants are often isolated because if it with no real path to improving their situation。 We Amazing & Inspiring Story。I really loved the effort put in by the author to show the many aspects of Giannis’ story， most of which being family， basketball as a career， immigration， and racism。 It really goes to show that great genetics don’t result in a successful future without hard work， dedication， and a great support system。 It’s sad to see the level of racism still occurring in the world and how immigrants are often isolated because if it with no real path to improving their situation。 We must be compassionate towards others， especially those that were not fortunate to have been born into good circumstances （all by luck）。 。。。more
Ryosei
，
The story of Myrin Fader will give you a deeper understanding of Giannis' life than you could ever imagine。 It will make you feel and understand what he and his family struggled with as immigrants living in Greece， what got him hooked on basketball for the first time， and what factors led him to become a successful NBA MVP and champion。 There are some amazing anecdotes about his life here， but I won't spoil them here。 But the story about the cookie jar will stay with me forever。 Some of the stor The story of Myrin Fader will give you a deeper understanding of Giannis' life than you could ever imagine。 It will make you feel and understand what he and his family struggled with as immigrants living in Greece， what got him hooked on basketball for the first time， and what factors led him to become a successful NBA MVP and champion。 There are some amazing anecdotes about his life here， but I won't spoil them here。 But the story about the cookie jar will stay with me forever。 Some of the stories are funny。 Others are infuriating。 Some stories are depressing。 All of them can inspire you in some way。 Life lessons are woven throughout， but you are never hit over the head with a preachy quote or sentence。 Readers will get what they want from this book。 Everyone who plays basketball should have this book， but you don't actually have to know anything about basketball to love it。 It is about joy， struggle， sacrifice， family， love， and so much more。 This is a book for everyone。 。。。more
Greg Holman
，
This is such an incredible story of risiliancy and beating all the odds。Giannis seems like such a great person。 Crazy to think in five years he went from peddling goods on the street to playing in NBA to bring an MVP to championship 🏆。
Michael Freeman
，
It's a fun read if you like the NBA and want to learn about Giannis。 It's also kind of a puff-piece about how great he is， but at the same time he seems like an actually great person so you can't really fault the book。 If you know the story of Giannis there's nothing there too shocking， and his story is awesome and inspiring to learn in detail。 Would only recommend if you area already interested in him as a person and athlete。 It's a fun read if you like the NBA and want to learn about Giannis。 It's also kind of a puff-piece about how great he is， but at the same time he seems like an actually great person so you can't really fault the book。 If you know the story of Giannis there's nothing there too shocking， and his story is awesome and inspiring to learn in detail。 Would only recommend if you area already interested in him as a person and athlete。 。。。more
Jason
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Great overview of Giannis's childhood， mentality and relationship with his brothers。 Great overview of Giannis's childhood， mentality and relationship with his brothers。 。。。more
Angela
，
Giannis's story is incredible。 The chapters that covered 2019-2020 felt very rushed though。 Giannis's story is incredible。 The chapters that covered 2019-2020 felt very rushed though。 。。。more
Spencer Hansen
，
Cool to learn about Giannis but not one of my favorite bios。
Ryan Andrews
，
A must read for any fan。
Bobby Froembling
，
Phenomenal story about a phenomenal person！
Erin Gardner
，
This book is incredible and my friends are probably 100% sick of me talking about it so much。 Am I a Bucks fan now？？
Justin S
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This is a fantastic book chronicling the entire journey of Giannis as a Greek teenager to his rise to superstardom。 There were so many fantastic interviews， insights， factoids and more。 Any Bucks and/or Giannis fan should definitely read this。 Mirin Fader is a phenomenal writer。
Marathon County Public Library
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