Giannis Antetokounmpo’s story extends beyond his private life. It’s the tale of a family. This is a story that goes beyond Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Athens, Greece, as well as beyond names and their connotations. It narrates the story of a bunch of people whose love is really, really deep. Love borne of misfortune and hardship. behaviors that are worthy of the word “love.”
The Filathlitikos gym’s air conditioning system in Zografou, Greece, seems a little off. It’s also quite warm. Despite being hot, the air is not humid. The painted portion of the court is coated in a darker shade of blue than the surrounding walls. Blue highlights are dotted throughout the gym. Giannis Antetokounmpo wipes the sweat from his brow while his boyhood coach, Takis Zivas, reflects on the good old days.
Coach Zivas informs his interpreter, without knowing any English, that he used to see the current MVP outwork everyone in the gym. Giannis gives his teacher a nod of approval and goes on to talk about his memories of this place before air conditioning. As Giannis talks, three of his brothers—Thamasis, Kostas, and Alex—swap profuse hugs from Coach Zivas. Pictures of all the brothers—aside from Alex—who played here are displayed on the wall behind Coach Zivas. They all came from the town of Sepolia to this institution, thanks to Thanasis.
Giannis acknowledges, “I didn’t pick basketball.” “Thamasis decided to play basketball.”
The Zappeion, a well-known Athens landmark surrounded by a Nike-designed area, is where Thanasis and Giannis are performing live just hours before they arrive at the Filathlitikos gym. The sun is reflected off the white beams that surround the building in a classic way. Without a roof, the late June heat is excruciating. However, Thanasis, who is seated just across from it, is smiling as his younger brother talks about the impact the Nike Zoom Freak 1 had on him.
Giannis, who is wearing a blue shirt with the words FREAK and the black-and-white Freak 1, says, “Thanasis was the star back then.” Naturally, I was a big fan of Thanasis and heard a lot of people talk about him. I wanted to look like him.
Thanasis came to a basketball-related realization. The oldest brother, Francis Antetokounmpo, was a professional soccer player in Nigeria. Despite the fact that the family loved soccer, Thanasis thought basketball would be a better choice. He was also right.
“For us, knowing that we might be able to start making a living in basketball…but this is another level that we never could have imagined,” comments Thanasis, who is also a member of the black/white Freak 1. Being able to inspire such a large number of peopleWe will always support one another, that much is clear to me. To me, perfection was defined as the ability to live and be with my family. This is not the same, though.
“There is nothing beautiful without struggle.”Theodore
Thanasis and Giannis used to go door-to-door in Athens with their parents, selling CDs and DVDs, to make some money. They were never away from their work. When Giannis and Kostas weren’t working, they would travel five kilometers from Sepolia to Zografou in order to finish their courtside repetitions. If they had to sleep at the gym every night, they would much prefer take a chance on the late-night trek home. Thanasis and Giannis had to share basketball sneakers once they started playing. They’d switch back and forth between two Kobe 4s.
“People think it was hard but it was actually fun,” says Thanasis, referring to their footwear conundrum. Let’s say Giannis is having fun. They look at you funny when you beat the competition because you beat them with a guy’s [sneakers].
They can joke around today, but not everyone knew who they were before they signed pro contracts and endorsement deals, and before any member of the family had ever worn a pair of Nike sneakers. Other than one another, they have nothing. And then that too was altered.
.
Their father, Charles, unexpectedly died in 2017 at his home in Milwaukee. At fifty-four, he suddenly suffered a heart attack. His name is now inextricably linked to the family.
With tears in his eyes, Giannis said, “Every day that I step on the floor, I think about my dad,” during his MVP speech. “That motivates and encourages me to keep going and play harder.”
Joy wouldn’t feel quite as good if it weren’t for sadness, and Giannis made sure that everyone who wore his trademark shoes would honor his late father. Every single Freak 1 outsole bears the words, “I am my father’s legacy.”
“At the end of the day, all that’s left for your kids is your legacy,” he tells KICKS. As you are aware, my father passed away two years ago, but his memory will live on. What makes you who you are is your legacy. To let people know that we are his legacy and that he will always be honored and remembered, five of us will be there.
Every shoe, as you can see, proclaims, “I am my father’s legacy.” He gestures to the midsole, “And you can see his name along with my mom’s name right here.”
Charles is honored in the Freak 1 song “Roses.” He would have loved the combination of white, red, and gold.
At the Zappeion, Giannis says, “This is about my dad,” during a live performance. He has the color “Roses” in his hand. His eyes are fixated on it as he speaks. He says, “To honor my father.” “It has his favorite colors.” He shakes his head a few times. Um.I’ll simply keep it brief and won’t get too involved. I’m giving my dad this only.
“The most important part of the work is the beginning.”Theodore
The Zoom Freak 1 took a whole year and a half to make. When it comes to branded footwear, that production timeline is very standard. But working with Antetokounmpo is different, and not just because the talks took place in Athens, says Kevin Dodson, Vice President of Basketball Footwear at Nike. Milwaukee as well. Beaverton as well.
“Giannis is that almost never-seen-before combination of size, speed, skill, explosiveness and competitiveness wrapped into one package,” Dodson says at the Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon. You must find a solution for this unique problem. His ancestry makes him special as well. Being a native of Greece, he will provide a unique perspective. from modest origins to an incredible ascension. His experience is what sets him apart as a collaborator. Every conversation we’ve had with him is unlike anything we’ve ever had before.
Giannis brought a notebook with him to record his queries and thoughts throughout the first sessions with Nike. His family was always with him, and he would always approach them for advice. Not merely, Hey, aren’t you thinking this is awesome? He wanted to know about a specific technology
“For me, it all comes down to family,” the MVP says to KICKS. I wanted them to be as much a part of whatever I did as possible. I wanted them to be aware of my encounters. Since it’s not just my sneaker, I was curious to hear what my family thought. I’m thrilled that kids had such a big say in the style, colors, and look of the sneaker.
Dodson reported that Giannis identified Kobes as his go-to pair of sneakers when he shoots baskets. The comfort and ride of the Kobe line has been a constant in his life ever since he started borrowing Thanasis’ pair. He would later wear the Kobe 10 for nearly three seasons in a row in the League.
Have three years gone by? It felt like more than a month went by. smug anti-Opunmpo smiles. “I loved their grip because they were really the only shoe that could withstand my frequent cuts.”
“You’ve got to understand why he liked the Kobe 10,” Oregonian Dodson says. He was genuinely delighted with the Kobe 10’s distinctive fit and forefoot ride. When we first sat down, he shouted out those components. We were all asking the same thing. Why that shoe, too? Why have you dressed the same for so many different seasons? So, we knew right away that the forefoot fit and underfoot ride had to be ideal to get the same sensation.
That’s why the Freak 1 was made to look like a Kobe silhouette.
According to Ross Klein, senior creative director of Nike Basketball, “our goal was to intensify the sensation that Antetokounmpo has grown to love in the Kobe.”
In the heel, a double-stacked Zoom Air unit was placed to improve the vital forefoot feeling. According to Klein, it’s one of the first basketball shapes with double-stacked Zoom. There are performance advantages to the shoe’s reverse Swoosh. Because of this, Ross and his team were able to establish a structure that prevented Antetokounmpo from leaping out of the sneaker during his Eurosteps.
The upper of the Freak 1 is made of mesh and is situated on top of a foam midsole. Ultimately, this results in a unique traction pattern with a dual-meaning design. First of all, Giannis’s foot is designed to support him throughout his extraordinarily long strides since he places a lot of weight on the lateral side of it. Second, it’s actually another tribute to his father even if it seems like a straightforward design with several directions. Carefully inspecting the outsole shows two roses.
Klein says, referring to the outsole pattern, “That has a lot of meaning to Giannis.”
“I assumed that Nike would announce, ‘This is going to be your shoe,’ and unveil a sneaker.” “But in actuality, no—they asked me what I wanted to share with the public,” Giannis replies.Since this is the Zoom Freak 1, I want the folks who buy it to know more about myself and my experience. Every shoe has a tale. There are a lot of things you need to figure out with the sneaker. I’m fascinated by the details.
In addition to the names of his parents on the medial midsole and the roses on the outsole, his brothers’ names are engraved on the heel. The “34” on his collar can be used to decipher either the Greek flag or the heel’s jersey number. New colors, like the “Greece” and “Coming to America” variants, are also being developed. These colors will continue to tell his story as he becomes aware of the potential influence of his sneakers.
He says, “It’s amazing,” referring to people’s passion for shoes. “Until I started working at Nike, I had no idea how big the shoe industry was or how much of an impact athletes and sneakers have on the next generation. And that’s when the narrative is useful again. I wanted many young people to be motivated when they saw my shoe. I want my sneaker to represent tenacity, optimism, and faith.
“A man’s character is determined by how he uses his power.”Theodore
On its first tour, Zoom Freak 1 visited Beaverton, Greece; Milwaukee; Los Angeles; and New York City. And to every place he went, Giannis brought chaos. Children are yelling for selfies in Athens. Teenagers in Queens are trying their hardest to show him how good they are at hoops. Adults in Sepolia were watching, smiling for miles around, and holding back their tears of happiness.
“With this comes responsibility,” says Thanasis. It’s not like everyone knows that my brother and I are the MVPs. As a result, you are modeled after others. It’s different now. It’s not like I could go behind. You have to put in your all at all times. I am so proud of him because he has truly tried to set a good example for others.
With respect to Antetokounmpo and his family, Dodson says, “Nike Basketball is approaching this from a global perspective.” Everyone who plays basketball can take a lesson from the story. His story may be related to by anybody, not just by those of us in the United States but also by those who are visiting Europe or Asia.
The story of Giannis Antetokounmpo cuts over barriers of age, race, and fandom. Everywhere he goes, he is greeted like a hero by Thanasis, Kostas, and Alex. He embodies the legacy of his parents, of Greece and Nigeria, and of an NBA team. He started out as a young youngster trying to provide for his family and has grown into a global source of inspiration for kids.
Even with a branded sneaker and an MVP title, Antetokounmpo is still unstoppable at his position.
He continues, “I’m really, really happy about everything, but at the end of the day I can’t stay in the moment that much. I try to be as humble and hungry as I can, and usually when you stick around the moment that makes you feel comfortable, and I don’t want to be comfortable.” Being uncomfortable could be advantageous. Whenever you venture outside of your comfort zone, you get better. You develop and learn new things.
I’m thrilled about the MVP and this specific sneaker because I’ve been waiting 18 months for its release. Even though it’s been a long journey, further developments of this kind must occur if we don’t stop getting better on and off the court.
He removes his brother’s sneakers after our interview is complete and starts to make the same faces he makes when he posters someone.
“They referred to my shoes as trash! Yes, precisely! He’s not targeting anyone specifically; he’s just venting at people on the internet who weren’t happy with the early leaks. “Are you crazy?”
He makes sure that his family members are noticed by flaunting the Freak 1 colors that are exclusive to Francis, Kostas, and Alex, ranging from smug to corny. Taking into account that Giannis Antetokounmpo’s story extends beyond his own.
It recounts a family’s story.