MIAMI — Giannis Antetokounmpo was watching Lionel Messi play in the World Cup semifinals this week, and a realization struck him.
Messi, to him, is greatness. And Antetokounmpo wants to follow Messi’s path.
Antetokounmpo got his welcome-to-Miami ceremony Thursday at the team’s arena, with a few fans chanting his name as he walked along his new home court for the first time after he got a tour of his new city.
“I need pressure at this time of my career,” Antetokounmpo said. “I think in order for me to go to the next level, I’ve got to get out of my comfort zone — and I feel like Miami was the place for me to be.”
Messi came to Inter Miami three years ago, adding to his already copious resume by winning a couple of Major League Soccer MVP awards and another championship. Antetokounmpo has now joined him in Miami, hoping his relocation comes with the same level of success.
“That’s the blueprint,” Antetokounmpo said. “LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, they set the blueprint and you just got to follow, right? It’s hard. You have to be disciplined. You have to be dedicated to your craft, but it’s there. And if you want to follow, you follow. If you don’t want to follow, then you go home.”
He didn’t go home. He’s in a new home.
Antetokounmpo got his formal Heat introduction a couple of weeks after Miami swung the trade that landed the two-time MVP along with Bobby Portis Jr. from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel’el Ware, Kasparas Jakučionis and draft capital.
For the Heat, it’s another on a long list of superstar acquisitions made since Pat Riley arrived to take over as team president in 1995.
“I think this is just part of who the Heat are in the pursuit of excellence,” Riley said. “But you don’t win championships unless you have greatness on the court and on the bench. … I’m just so excited for this challenge.”
Antetokounmpo entered the NBA in 2013. His career totals to date: 21,531 points, 8,882 rebounds and 4,484 assists. The point and rebound totals are both fifth best in the NBA over that span, while the assist total is 13th best — and those numbers are just part of the reason why the Heat consider him to still be one of the five best players in the league.
If all that wasn’t enough, has simply been a nightmare for defenses. Nobody has drawn more fouls over those 13 seasons than Antetokounmpo, which is absolute music to the ears of Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.
“A little while ago Pat called me into his office and he looked at me,” Spoelstra said. “He said, ‘Do you want to coach Giannis?’”
Spoelstra’s no-brainer answer: “Yes.”
And then he walked out, waiting for Riley, Heat general manager Andy Elisburg and the rest of the front office to get a deal done. When Antetokounmpo arrived early Thursday morning for his first workout as a member of the Heat, Spoelstra was waiting for him.
“I just want to be coached hard,” Antetokounmpo said. “I’d rather you tell me the ugly truth than a beautiful lie. … I’m excited to be coached by him.”
Antetokounmpo’s run in Milwaukee ended with him having, by far, the most points in franchise history, more than 7,000 ahead of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s total during his tenure with the Bucks. Antetokounmpo is also Milwaukee’s all-time leader in rebounds and assists, plus he ranks second on the team’s career list in steals.
He had a ton of success there. He’s looking for more success in Miami, which is one of the reasons why Portis felt like the Heat were the best place for him as well.
“The conversations I have with Giannis have always been about winning. ‘Where can we go to win? How can we impact winning? How can you get another ’chip? That’s always been the talk,’” Portis said during his introductory news conference earlier Thursday. “It hasn’t been about anything else but winning. … All he cares about is winning.”
By all accounts, the Giannis-in-Miami era is off to the right start.
Antetokounmpo was thrilled by the welcome he and his wife got when their plane landed in Miami after watching Messi and Argentina beat England in Atlanta on Wednesday. He says he already loves the Miami weather (“warmer than Milwaukee,” he said) and isn’t a fan of iguanas, which are everywhere in South Florida (“those guys, stay away from me,” he said).
Riley told him the Heat are looking to win and win big. That was all Antetokounmpo needed to really hear. He has one ring. He wants more.
“You’ve got to work,” Antetokounmpo said. “They show you, they show you the way. It’s not hard. Just listen and open your eyes. It’s something that I wanted. I was able to accomplish it once in my career. Hopefully, it will happen a second time.”
